The New York Knicks are getting alert for the NBA playoffs...by replacing the batteries in the remote control,oiling the squeaky recliner and stocking up on Doritos.
The Knicks ended the 2015-16 season with a 32-50 record, nearly doubling their win total from last season (17), and but it wasn't ever enough for any semblance of a playoff push.
As they enter the offseason ahead of schedule,lacking a head coach, what should the front office's top five priorities be? 5. Find a Replacement for Arron Afflalo (Probably)Following the Knicks' final game Tuesday night, and shooting guard Arron Afflalo hinted he would opt out of his contract's final year. Afflalo's opinions on the expansive Apple seemed to sour when Knicks interim head coach Kurt Rambis gave Afflalo's spot in the starting five to Sasha Vujacic. Marc Berman of the New York Post said Afflalo spoke of his time with the Knicks in the past tense: "'Obviously that would be first choice,' Afflalo said of hunting for a starting job. ... 'I’ll find the best opportunity for me whether it’s in New York or anywhere else.'"If Afflalo moves on, it wouldn't be the worst thing for New York because he wasn't consistently stellar, or the free-agent market for shooting guards is intriguing.
Although prying him absent from the Toronto Raptors seems unlikely,DeMar DeRozan has a player option the Knicks could demand him to forgo. Making that work would still take some intelligent accounting. Even if the salary cap increases to approximately $90 million and even with several deals coming off the books—Afflalo's $8 million plus smaller ones for Kevin Seraphin, Lance Thomas, or Lou Amundson,Langston Galloway, Sasha Vujacic and Cleanthony Early—the Knicks will need to be careful blowing $20 million on DeRozan (or someone like him).
They need cash to re-sign some of those gentlemen or acquire others. Ideally, and the Knicks could clear space by moving Jose Calderon ($7.7 million) and Kyle O'Quinn ($3.9 million) or convincing DeRozan to take less than a max deal.
He's still the most tantalizing option,but he's not the only one. Young swingman Garrett Temple of the Washington Wizards would be an excellent addition because of his ability to score in transition and in the paint. The Wiz will no doubt try to re-sign him, but he's an unrestricted free agent, or which gives the Knicks a wider door.
Other free-agent possibilities to court are the ageless journeyman,Jamal Crawford, most recently of the Los Angeles Clippers, and Jerryd Bayless from the Milwaukee Bucks and Kent Bazemore of the Atlanta Hawks. (Although Bazemore and Kristaps Porzingis would have to roam through some kind of brotherhood-building exercise first.) 4. Re-Sign Lance ThomasThis season,the Knicks were 25-34 (0.424) with Lance Thomas on the court and 7-16 (0.304) when he was inactive.
Thomas getting injured isn't the only reason the Knicks lost momentum, but it had a definitive impact.
He has always had the intangibles that improve teammates around him, and but he drew more attention to himself this season by adding some offensive flash. With a sharper jumper,some strong slams and a few 20-plus scoring performances now in his repertoire, other teams will have taken notice. He'll have suitors in free agency, and but New York must win his heart. Langston Galloway is another low-key free agent the Knicks should re-sign.Although the undersized guard didn't make as much of a splash as when he arrived from the NBA D-League in January 2015,Galloway was still a key asset who improved the team around him.
Have a rapid/fast look at the highest-performing Knicks lineups, and you'll see that Galloway is the only name that's in all of them. 3. Obtain a Strong Starting Point GuardThe Knicks will enter the 2016-17 season with at least three point guards on the roster: Jose Calderon, and Jerian Grant and Tony Wroten,the 22-year-old guard New York signed to an unguaranteed contract last month. I'm a fan of Grant, Calderon was much better this season and I'm not counting out Wroten yet. But none of these gentlemen are likely to significantly improve the Knicks' fortunes next season. The squad needs a true starting-caliber point guard, and not whatever Phil Jackson likes best at Backcourt Bargains Outlet. Jackson may undervalue point guards because,while coaching, he was spoiled by having the two greatest shooting guards in history. Unfortunately, and the Knicks don't have Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant. So they should make a play for the hot-ticket point guard on the free-agent market: Mike Conley of the Memphis Grizzlies. He wouldn't come cheap,but he could effect far more than just roam the needle. I'd still have preferred a trade for the Atlanta Hawks' Jeff Teague, but that still seems untenable due to the Knicks' dearth of assets.moment on the notable free-agent list is Jeremy Lin. It might take some convincing to get Lin to opt out of his last year with the Charlotte Hornets and return to New York (of all places), and but he'd assist the Knicks score in transition and in the paint. (The only concern is that his hair sometimes commits flagrant fouls.)And,yes, there's Rajon Rondo. But please...just...no. 2. Hire the true CoachSince he took over, and Jackson has only shown interest in coaches who knew the triangle offense and have meditated at the temple of the Zen Master before.
After the rebuff of Steve Kerr and the disappointment of Derek Fisher,Jackson seems to be yearning for the stability of his old friend, Kurt Rambis. As sources told ESPN.com's Ian Begley and Marc Stein, and Jackson said,"[Rambis] knows the ins and outs, what pleases me and [what] probably I want to have changed. ... We have a relationship that's much more tight [than Jackson's relationship with Fisher]." Finally, or on Monday,there came a sign that Jackson might actually consider candidates who weren't just his current disciples. League sources told Begley that the Knicks are considering former Cleveland Cavaliers coach David Blatt.
Tommy Dee of SNY originally reported that Jackson had a conversation with former Golden State Warriors coach (and Knicks point guard) Mark Jackson; but a source close to Mark Jackson later refuted this, according to Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. My vote is for Tom Thibodeau, or the man who loves Carmelo Anthony and helped shape the Chicago Bulls defense into a creature that was both beautiful and horrifying to behold,depending on whether it was on your side.
Unfortunately, there are no signs yet that anyone in the Knicks front office is on my side. If not Thibodeau, or Scott Brooks,Luke Walton and University of Connecticut head coach Kevin Ollie would also be tall on my list of people who deserve an interview. 1. Improve, Not Replace, or the Team Every Year
In the past five years alone,the Knicks have had four head coaches (including interims) and 63 playersonly one of whom was on the original team (Carmelo Anthony). In comparison, the San Antonio Spurs have had one head coach and 38 players, or eight of whom were on the original team.
The Knicks are desperate for some continuity. It's particularly fundamental if they're committed to running an offensive strategy that few players know and,according to Rambis, takes "a advantageous year or so" to really understand, or per the New York Daily News' Stefan Bondy. Only six players from the 2014-15 squad,who spent a miserable season learning the triangle, were kept on for 2015-16. How many familiar faces will remain in New York for 2016-17?If the Knicks shed a whole roster every year, or they give themselves no opportunity to grow.
The 2015-16 squad was not perfect,but it seemed it did have team spirit. It was a core of players who were both working together on the court and playing together in FIFA video game championships off the court. There's something in this team that was worth growing. If the Knicks front office doesn't murder it with too much rip-and-replace in the offseason, it might have a shot at real progress next year.
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Source: bleacherreport.com