Getty Chris Clemons, New York Knicks
While rumors continue to swirl about the New York Knicks‘ infatuation with Jalen Brunson, the front office has done its due diligence on some under-the-radar prospects.
Adam Zagoria of NYT Sports reported that the Knicks spent last week holding camps for multiple free agents as they looked to find some hidden gems to add to their rotation.
The Knicks had a free agent camp this week:
Devon Dotson
John Petty
Craig Randall
Reggie Perry
Lou king
George king
Chris Clemons
Alize Johnson
Carlik Jones
Aaron Henry
AJ Lawson
Daquan Jeffries
One of the names that stand out from their list of camp invites is former Houston Rockets guard Chris Clemons, who is coming off the back of a stellar campaign with the Boston Celtics G-League affiliate – the Maine Celtics.
Throughout the season, the five-foot-nine guard has averaged 16.3 points, four assists, and 4.9 rebounds per game while shooting 43.6% from the field and 42.1% from deep over 14 games, starting three of them. Clemons has developed a reputation for scoring at will and would fit into the Knicks bench unit as a guard who can generate his own offense and hit perimeter shots when curling off screens or operating off-ball.
Knicks Don’t Need Another Rotation Guard
When you look at the Knicks roster, you can see it’s littered with young, talented, high-upside guards. Immanuel Quickley is a combo guard capable of running the point, and the same can be said about shooting guard Quentin Grimes, while Miles McBride proved he deserves more development time next season when he was given a chance this year.
So, while Clemons would certainly add scoring off the Knicks bench, there is already enough guard talent on the roster, meaning that unless a star player joins the franchise via trade or free agency, it’s going to be hard to justify adding an additional body that could potentially limit the development of the young players already on the roster.
In fact, a growing section of the fanbase would prefer the Knicks to develop one of their younger guards by thrusting them into a starting role, as that would allow the team to make moves to strengthen other areas of the team.
Draft And Stash Rookie Validates Knicks Youth Movement
The Knicks have consistently been a team to go big game hunting during the off-season as they chase a quick fix to their never-ending malaise, yet even when the franchise has been successful in enticing top talent to New York, things never work out the way they had hoped.
So, with the Knicks now stacked with young talent and RJ Barrett looking like a future star, perhaps this is the perfect time for the franchise to change course. And if the front office ever needed convincing, they should look no further than recent draft-and-stash rookie Rokas Jokubaitis, who recently won the EuroLeague’s Rising Star award.
FC Barcelona celebrates Knicks’ pick & stash Rokas Jokubaitis for winning the Euroleague’s Rising Star trophy.
📸 FC Barcelona
Averaging 7.2 points, 1.6 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game while boasting shooting splits of 55.6% from the field and 59.5% from deep, the young guard could be another impactful player for the Knicks to call upon in a year’s time. With such an exciting prospect under the team’s control and continuing to develop in Europe, the Knicks have proven capable of locating under-the-radar talent. His success could encourage the front office to continue on their current course.
However, if Jalen Brunson decides to leave the Dallas Mavericks, we can expect New York to change direction and add the star guard to the rotation immediately.