Official 2017-2018 Knicks season thread

[donewithjs]

And how can you say you wouldn’t want to be in Miami’s position? They literally went to the finals like 6 years straight a few years ago. No sports organization can keep that up forever. Everything good thing comes to an end.

 

[nick.]

I'm talking about the Heat post-LeBron with limited draft picks and cap space to work with.

They overachieved last season & spent big money last season to try to do it again. They're a decent team but have no flexibility to get better.

 

[naijaboy]

Hopefully THjr comes back playing like how left off then we can have a better idea of how far away the young talent is to be truely competitive.

 

[doxen5703]

I agree with nick. . I also think KP just needs to put on size. We need to be able to switch him 4/5 no matter what. Kanter is a defensive liability but his rebounding and post game is great. Him and KOQ is a good rotation, would be better if we could squeeze KP in on small ball.

 

[njavier03]

It's all about money at the end of the day. If Kanter wants to come back for 4/$60M, sign me up.

I just don't want to eventually become a team like the Hawks that's a perennial 6-8 seed for a decade.

I get what you’re saying, but the hawks haven’t had a KP type player. Horford and Millsap were good, but neither were a Porzingis. I’m cool with Kanter. He’s productive and a great teammate. Don’t forget we had Melo, who wasn’t the greatest defender either. It’s Noah’s contract that’s killing us.

 

[flyeed]

But on the real tho

Shout out anyone that remembers watching Viva Roberto on public access

 

[the gr8est]

I've said it 1000x but pairing Porzingis with a traditional center long-term significantly limits this team's ceiling. I love Kanter but it's for that reason I don't see him as a long-term piece.

IMO Knicks should be looking to build on Frank/THJ/Porzingis with another guard (maybe Courtney Lee for the time being, depending on how the season shapes out because he is older) and a defensive minded swingman.

Also, I haven't been in this thread for a week or so now so idk if it was spoken about but the Knicks should definitely go after Jordan Clarkson, ideally for some of our bigs IMO.

A scoring 6th man like him backing up Frank's defense and passing would be a good look long-term.

 

[mjmoney23]

I've said it 1000x but pairing Porzingis with a traditional center long-term significantly limits this team's ceiling. I love Kanter but it's for that reason I don't see him as a long-term piece.

IMO Knicks should be looking to build on Frank/THJ/Porzingis with another guard (maybe Courtney Lee for the time being, depending on how the season shapes out because he is older) and a defensive minded swingman.

Also, I haven't been in this thread for a week or so now so idk if it was spoken about but the Knicks should definitely go after Jordan Clarkson, ideally for some of our bigs IMO.

A scoring 6th man like him backing up Frank's defense and passing would be a good look long-term.

I like that move depending who we give up. We desperately need another player that can create his own shot.

Honest question, what is the deal with Beasley? He looks high every game.

 

[gridebounca11]

truly a pitiful performance against the sixers

this washed melo version of KP is horrible to watch

i usually try to be cynical and real about the predicament of the team,

but its seriously disheartening to see that KP gets NO easy buckets. son is the tallest player on the court every game with decent athleticism and we have given him maybe 5 lobs all season. he doesnt get any lay ups, partly because of design and party because thats just his game.

so many times I want to see him rip the board down and then rise up and bang it, but i guess thats not his game. Hes more finesses than ferocity.

but when his jumper isnt falling, you can see the whole team start pressings.

jarrett jacks been dookie last few weeks. jeff is gonna burn him the hell out. asking way too much of him coming off ACL surg.

mistakes from ron and frank I can live with, as long as they stay aggressive and look to create.

jeffs rotations been really off. i never liked him anyways.

team cant win on the road. hardaway gives us a dimension we lack.

but we really are getting very predictable on offense. literally noone shooting the 3. working hard for a 2. cant hit FTs, turnovers.

january makes or breaks the season. lets see if these lil Ns are up to task. cause so far theyre snatching defeat out the jaws of victory. need to grab their nutsacks and win some damn games. get creative. get dirty.

 

[ballinsam23]

Lack of 3 point attempts is kinda alarming for sure

 

[floodarea]

Clean look at the Knicks "City" jerseys

 

[the gr8est]

gridebounca11 IMO playing Porzingis at the 5 would get him more of those buckets. He is drawn away from the hoop too much with Kanter occupying the post. That's a major reason I see him at the 5 long-term, so that we can uttilize his length and athleticism around the basket, especially as Frank develops and hopefully progresses into being a really good pick-and-roll PG, while still being able to step out and use his shooting/quickness to be a matchup nightmare for opposing 5s.

mjmoney23 playing around with the trade machine, which I usually stay away from, I got Clarkson/Harkless to the Knicks, Willy/Ed Davis to the Lakers (clear cap space with Davis' expiring which is the entire reason they want to trade Clarkson while getting a cheap young center to build with their young core and replace Lopez when his contract expires this summer), and Courtney Lee/KOQ to Portland (2 veterans to make their playoff team more dangerous, Lee would be great as a 3 and D guard to compliment their Dame/CJ backcourt and KOQ as a banger off the bench on a team-friendly deal).

Obviously it's just ******* around with the trade machine, but both Clarkson and Harkless have been linked to the Knicks, and this trade could give LAL and POR what they are looking for, and I would trade Lee/KOQ/Willy for Clarkson/Harkless in a heartbeat for the Knicks.

 

[nick.]

Lack of 3 point attempts is kinda alarming for sure

Yeah, it's not like we don't have the personnel. Hopefully the next coach is forward thinking.

 

[gridebounca11]

If KP is to thrive at the 5, we need a True stretch 4 to pair up with him. Someone to rebound and shoot 3s. our roster currently has bruising big men only. also keep in mind KPs closeout game is pretty weak .

Growing pains

 

[the gr8est]

Yeah, it's not like we don't have the personnel. Hopefully the next coach is forward thinking.

Lol Hornacek isnt the problem. He is a forward thinking guy and a shooter by nature. His 2013-2014 Suns, with 2 point guards who can break down defenses were fast paced and finished 6th in the League in 3s made and 4th in 3s attempted on their way to an overachieving 48 win season. I'm not saying he is definitely the coach that takes this team into the future, but he deserves credit as a smart basketball guy who knows how to coach teams based on how they are constructed.

The problem is our personnel. Sure, we have shooters, but that doesn't matter as much when we don't have a single point guard capable of breaking down the defense right now and drawing help defenders in.

That goes double when you almost always have a center in the game occupying space in the post instead of trying to spread out the defense with one roll man in KP and shooters spread out around like most teams in the NBA these days are running.

Having this kind of personnel makes it harder for shooters to operate compared to other teams in the NBA. It forces the Knicks to slow the pace down and be a half-court team, which makes it harder for shooters to get easy looks. Yet, it's the front office who insists on spending money and roster spots on Ramon Sessions and Ron Baker instead of a quicker point guard and having 25 centers on the roster when they really only need 1 or 2 in addition to KP.

Hornacek has been forced into trying to design a half court offense that works, and it has kept the ball moving, and he deserves a lot of credit for the Knicks 17-16 start, but the lack of shooting isnt on him. He has done what he can, and he emphasizes getting the4 ball up quick and looking for easy buckets, but he has to coach the roster based on the players he has. And the Knicks as currently designed with aging PGs and low post centers, are best coached as a team that is played inside-out.

 

[doxen5703]

Clean look at the Knicks "City" jerseys

Almost copped the hat the other day but they only made snapbacks. Need a fitted for my big head.

 

[njavier03]

If KP is to thrive at the 5, we need a True stretch 4 to pair up with him. Someone to rebound and shoot 3s. our roster currently has bruising big men only. also keep in mind KPs closeout game is pretty weak .

Growing pains

KP also is 9 feet tall and averages 6 rebounds per game. At this point, we NEED Kanter.

 

[njavier03]

Blown that the black therma zip up hoodies are sold out everywhere

 

[gridebounca11]

Personally ive been very happy with our big men. I just think that without hardaway our backcourt is constantly overmatched . Courtney lee cannot consistently create. Jack is washed (shows flashes). Frank n baker bring the defense and thats good. We just have no penetration .

 

[Air Pope]

Yeah, it's not like we don't have the personnel. Hopefully the next coach is forward thinking.

We actually don't have the personnel. Coaching is fine. Hornacek literally encourages 3's. The players just aren't great shooters (minus KP & Dougie). Frank is too hesitant to take as many 3's as I feel he should.

 

[the gr8est]

KP also is 9 feet tall and averages 6 rebounds per game. At this point, we NEED Kanter.

You can't just look at averages. If you watch the games you will see that KP always let's Kanter grab the easy boards on defense and on offense Kanter's presence constantly draws KP away from the basket and potential offensive rebounds. We have seen what a menace KP can be on the offensive glass in the past, he just hasn't had those same opportunities this season alongside Kanter.

 

[gridebounca11]

Question for you guys.

Does our best lineup include courtney lee?

I respect his steadiness but i have qualms about his play as well.

 

[njavier03]

You can't just look at averages. If you watch the games you will see that KP always let's Kanter grab the easy boards on defense and on offense Kanter's presence constantly draws KP away from the basket and potential offensive rebounds. We have seen what a menace KP can be on the offensive glass in the past, he just hasn't had those same opportunities this season alongside Kanter.

but you also have to look at Kanter's positioning. he's always in position to rebound, whether it be on offense or defense. assume we didn't have Kanter. i highly doubt that KP would average even two whole more RPG. he just doesn't have the body to keep other guys off the boards.

 

[squatchnt]

If KP becomes the 5 you'll need a Kanteresque 4.

 

[8pm at msg]

KP is never going to be a great rebounder. If we play KP at the 5 we'd still be better off with a small ball 4 because another traditional big man will just shrink the floor again.

If we gang rebound we won't need a rebounding specialist, especially if we speed up the pace.