Getty Cam Reddish is out of the rotation.
The New York Knicks are still in the process of figuring out their rotation going forward, and their latest change saw Cam Reddish, a player who had a strong beginning to the season as a starter, now finds himself out of the rotation entirely.
Reddish is in the final year of his contract with the Knicks and was not offered an extension before the deadline, so it’s looking more and more like he’ll be playing elsewhere next season.
After the win over the Atlanta Hawks, his former team, Reddish was asked about not being in the rotation anymore.
Reddish Breaks His Silence
Cam Reddish on no longer being in the rotation: “I guess that’s just how it goes..I got no control over that. I just come to work everyday, just like y’all. Do my job & hey man, it’s just the result.” Also said he’s not sure why he was pulled and that he didn’t request a trade.
In being removed from the rotation, he joins Evan Fournier and Derrick Rose, so the Knicks are going through a bunch of changes at the moment as they work to find the best roster.
“I guess that’s just how it goes,” he said. “I got no control over that. I just come to work everyday, just like y’all. Do my job and hey man, it’s just the result.”
He says he has not requested a trade from the team and he’s not sure why he was taken out of the rotation. In 20 games, with eight of them being starts, Reddish averaged 8.4 points per game on a career-high 44.9 percent shooting, so he was having a solid year before the removal.
This could end up being a temporary move from head coach Tom Thibodeau, but it could also be a case of having too many cooks in the kitchen. The Knicks have been stockpiling a lot of young talent in recent years, and not all of them are able to find minutes.
It’s been a problem for Obi Toppin since he’s arrived, but a knee injury suffered by the young forward in the win over the Hawks could open the door back up to Reddish getting more minutes.
Knicks Climbing Up the Standings
With the win over the Hawks, the Knicks find themselves sitting at 12-13 on the season and owners of the 9th seed in the Eastern Conference. If that stands, it would put them in the play-in tournament with the chance to make the playoffs.
While the addition of Jalen Brunson was a move that fans expected more from, the Knicks will take being in the play-in tournament instead of missing it completely like they did last season.
There are some encouraging signs from the team that people can point to, such as Julius Randle’s reemergence and Brunson’s strong play since putting on a Knicks jersey.
Of course, they’ll need to get more out of newly extended swingman RJ Barrett if they want to get over the hump of being a play-in team to becoming a true contender.
After improving over each of his seasons in the league, Barrett appears to have hit a wall and he’s shooting just 40.3 percent on the season, down from even last year’s average of 40.8 percent. With him averaging 15.6 shots a game, that’s not a recipe for success and the team will need him to become more efficient if he’s to live up to his contract.