Knicks Insider: "All Things Knicks"

Read some speculation online that Mike Miller has a good chance of staying on as an assistant coach under a new ?flashier? head coach hired in the offseason. Results have been up and down, but I really like Miller as a part of this organization overall.

htr10 said:

Read some speculation online that Mike Miller has a good chance of staying on as an assistant coach under a new ?flashier? head coach hired in the offseason. Results have been up and down, but I really like Miller as a part of this organization overall.

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I like Miller staying on. He can be assistant to JVG (who I hear is the front runner) or Thibs or Mark Jax.

Now I?m seeing Taj Gibson quotes about Tom Thibodeau and the possibility of him coaching the Knicks. If we don?t hire Thibodeau, not going to lie, it will be a gut punch. Been waiting years for this organization to give him a chance.

Thibodeau made the Bulls a playoff team and a constant threat for years despite horrible injuries. He turned the Wolves into a playoff team. Took them from a 31 win team to a 47 win team in one season. Idiots fired him because he was 19 - 21 to start the next season. If he made us 19 - 21 next season, we?d throw him a parade.

He will bring back to NYC the type of basketball that Knicks fans want to see.

My dream is that we hire Thibbs, bring in JVG to be GM and hire Ewing and M Jax with Miller as assistants

Well, RJ led all scorers in the Rising Stars game. He did also take the most shots, so that?s how that goes I guess.

htr10 said:

Well, RJ led all scorers in the Rising Stars game. He did also take the most shots, so that?s how that goes I guess.

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11-17 ain?t bad (0-4 from 3), even if there wasn?t any defense. He was also tied for most assists on his team and 2 off rebound leader.

Unlike Knox, DSJ and Knits... I suspect RJ will be a much better offensive player in his third season. He just seems like a grinder. He will become a more efficient player, I hope.

? Barrett looked very comfortable in the run and gun environment of the exhibition to commence All-Star weekend, which unfortunately isn't what the Knicks like to do. Hopefully he can use this performance against his younger peers to kick-start a strong finish to his rookie season.?

Get a real PG and suddenly RJ and MRob are better.

In Chicago, as part of All-Star festivities in the Skills Competition on Saturday night, Dinwiddie trashed the Knicks again. The outspoken Brooklyn guard believes the Nets? dominance over the Knicks will continue on and on, not really seeing a bright future for Manhattan?s team.

However, Dinwiddie admitted his club will never have more fans but they will always have more wins.

?We?ll never take over the Knicks,?? Dinwidde said before Saturday morning?s press conferences. ?That?s not going to happen. They?re too entrenched in what it means ? Madison Square Garden, Rucker Park, that type of vibe.

?But in terms of being a better basketball team, that happened a minute ago. That?s not new. We?re a better basketball team than the Knicks. We were last year. Probably will be next year. It kind of what it is. So I know Knicks fans are going to get mad, but that is the truth.??

Asked if he can see a brighter future for the rebuilding Knicks, Dinwiddie decided not to go politically correct.

?You want a real answer??? Dinwiddie said. ?Probably not. They?ll probably have a high draft pick. Unless they do something via trade or via free agency, which I don?t know if this free-agency class is that spectacular, they?re probably not going to be that good. We?ll see. I can?t tell the future. But more than likely, I mean Kevin Durant is coming back [next season]. And he?s Kevin Durant. He?s really good.??

?????-

lol. You got Kyrie and KD, are having a fairly decent season considering the injuries.... and yet you?re only relevant bc they want your thoughts on the Knicks.

You mean, Nets with 2 HOF players are going to be better than the teenage Knickerbockers in 2021? Shocking!

What Knicks fans look forward to is watching KD and Kyrie relegate Lavert, Dimwitty and Allen to afterthoughts. Good luck with that.

And, never forget one thing: KD can?t win as a main dog. OKC had 3-2 series lead, were up double digits at home in game 6. Mr All World went 1-7 from the field in the 4tn Q.

Yes, Nets will win 57 games next season. Be toast of town... then will get knocked out in second round by MIL, BOS, or TOR. Then, Knick fans will enjoy media eating KD and Kyrie alive.

Bets win another 50 games in 2022... then lose again in EC Finals. Then it will implode.

So, we shall see who has the better run from 2023 onward.

The Knicks, who own the fifth-worst record, have their own lottery pick. Odds are, that should be in the top five, with the lottery held in Chicago on May 19.

The Knicks also will have the Clippers? first-rounder from the Marcus Morris trade at the NBA deadline ? which figures to be around No. 25. And they own Charlotte?s second-round pick from the Willy Hernangomez deal in 2018. If the season ended today, that pick would be No. 36.

According to an NBA source, the Knicks scouting staff has been instructed the top priority is a scoring point guard on which to use their lottery pick.

The second priority, likely for the Clippers? pick, is a shooting guard who has 3-point range ? something rookie RJ Barrett has not shown.

Ball, Anthony... Nico... But don?t sleep on a few other candidates who can play the point ? Kentucky combo guard Tyrese Maxey, Iowa State 6-5 point guard Tyrese Haliburton and 6-5 combo guard Killian Hayes, who plays in Germany.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/nypost...uld-lead-to-lamelo-ball-college-studs/amp/Yes

Where we stand at the All Star break. Defense has been excellent lately but the shooting has been poor with our young players along with Payton having terrible TS%. For all the talk I heard that RJ thinks he deserves consideration for ROY, he doesn't deserve it when he's in the same conversation as Stanley Johnson and MCW as a shooter.

The Athletic

Mike Vukerov


To say the first segment (it’s not really a half, more like an arbitrary division) of the 2019-20 season has been a wild one for the Knicks would be an understatement. They are 17-38, the fifth-worst record in the league. There has been significant changeover in these last few months. They’ve fired a head coach (David Fizdale), a president (Steve Mills), and traded their best player (Marcus Morris). They were a portion of overtime away from their first five-game winning streak in five years and 11 months, and they’ve had six separate streaks of three or more losses.
There are small victories, too. With 17 wins, they’ve already matched last season’s win total. At least improvement from last year is guaranteed, which should have been a given but looked uncertain at times. They have 27 games left to pile up more wins.
[h=3]What’s at stake[/h]1. The final portion of this season will be seen through an obvious prism. Everyone will probably feel like they’re under a microscope. Leon Rose will take over as the next president of basketball operations at some point in the next few weeks. Then he’ll decide who to keep and not to keep. It’s an unsavory but real part of the NBA and the kind that accompanies mass change like the kind the Knicks have undergone this season. The Knicks have five players on team options/non-guaranteed contracts for next season and two free agents. While Steve Stoute said too much during his appearance on ESPN’s “First Take” — essentially firing the coaching staff during a chaotic interview, then walking back with a statement released by the Knicks later on and from the team itself — his words did point out that the coaches don’t have any safety once the season ends either.
2. RJ Barrett’s development. The rookie started off hot then hit a dry spell and has been on and off since. Perhaps the Knicks will use the post-All-Star break portion to try to get Barrett going again after he returned from a sprained right ankle that forced him to miss nine games. Barrett can be a force at getting to the rim, he can be a smart passer, and he crashes the boards. He is competitive and attentive as a defender, especially for a rookie. But his shooting needs work. He has the ninth-lowest eFG percentage of any rookie in the last 10 seasons who has played at least 35 games and averaged 10 minutes per game. Stanley Johnson and Michael Carter-Williams are not great company to keep as a shooter. There’s a lot to like with Barrett, but the question remains about his jump shot.
3. Minutes for the Knicks youth. Maybe the Knicks will use the All-Star break to catch a breath and recalibrate for the rest of the season and decide that now is the time to start downshifting the vets and give more time to their group of 22-and-younger players. That can be a difficult thing to do. Obviously a team forsakes some level of competitiveness and has to admit that the season is no longer just about winning. The Knicks are seven games out of the eighth seed with 27 games to go, and they’d need to jump five teams to get into the playoffs. That dream is likely done. There’s also another consideration: It would be naturally difficult for the staff and front office to prioritize the future for a franchise when they don’t have any idea if they will be a part of it. That’s just human nature, and it’s understandable. Kevin Knox has averaged just 14.3 minutes in the four games since Marcus Morris was traded; Frank Ntilikina is averaging 16; Dennis Smith Jr. has played just 48 minutes in total. The Knicks wouldn’t be playing the best players, but they would be force-feeding young players minutes for their development.
[h=3]It’s not all bad[/h]1. It hasn’t gotten a lot of attention, but the Knicks have become a pretty decent defensive team lately. The trend may have something to do with timing. Since Dec. 7, New York is 16th in the NBA in defensive efficiency — that’s the day Mike Miller has started as interim coach. Miller, a basketball lifer who has had an unexpected turn as the head coach, has been one of the bright spots for the Knicks. They are 13-20 since he took over and the ramshackle team under Fizdale has found some order. Over their last 13 games, the Knicks are actually fourth in defensive efficiency. The offense has never come around — they’re 29th — and maybe there’s only so much a coach can do there. Assistant coach Pat Sullivan should get some credit here, too. He’s the one who has been involved in defensive gameplanning. The Knicks have held opponents to 100 points or fewer seven times in their last 13 games, which is pretty impressive since NBA teams are averaging 111 points per game this season and only three teams (Knicks included) average fewer than 105 a game.
2. Miller has seemingly established himself as an NBA-level coach this season. Maybe it won’t come as a head coach again, but at the very least he deserves to be on a staff somewhere next season, if not New York. He didn’t get to the NBA until he was 55, grinding away at the low levels of Division I and then the G League, but Miller has shown with his competence and acumen this season he should have a job in the league.
3. Julius Randle caught a lot of flack for his performance over the first month or so of the season and he really did struggle, but he’s been better of late, playing closer to what the Knicks hoped he could be. Since Jan. 1, Randle has averaged 20.3 points and 11 rebounds in 20 games. His outside shooting remains putrid, but he is hitting more than half of his 2-pointers and is playing, mostly, in control. Randle is 11th in the league in shots within 4 feet of the basket. With more help, Randle could blend into an ensemble instead of having to be a leading man, a role that would suit him better and make up for some of the deficiencies in his game.
[h=3]Fun with numbers[/h]1. It’s interesting to wonder what the Knicks might be now if Elfrid Payton was healthy the whole season. The Knicks are 10-17 this season when he starts; you can do the math when he doesn’t. Not that all stats are favorable to him — he’s got the second-worst plus/minus on the Knicks over their last 22 games.
2. Mitchell Robinson isn’t thought of as an elite rebounder, not in comparison to his shot-blocking and dunking prowess, but he does rank seventh in the NBA this season (among players who have appeared in at least 20 games and average at least 10 minutes) in contested defensive rebounding percentage, which measures rebounding while an opponent is at least within 3.5 feet of them.
3. The Knicks remain the worst free-throw shooting team in the NBA, making just 69.2 percent of their free throws. They are the only team shooting worse than 70 percent this season (the Lakers are 29th, at 73 percent). They are at risk of becoming the 25th team since the 2000-01 season to shoot below 70 percent from the line. The Knicks have hit fewer than 65 percent of their free throws in 19 games this season, more than any other NBA team by far. The Nets and Magic are tied for second with 11 such games.
4. The Knicks are in line for their seventh straight losing season. That would put them two short of the franchise record: nine straight losing seasons, from 2001-02 through 2009-10, though the Knicks made the playoffs during that stretch with a 39-43 season. So this would be tie the longest stretch without a playoff appearance, matching the Knicks of 1959-60 through 1965-66 — though in those seasons there were eight teams and four made the postseason.
[h=3]The absurd[/h]1. Miller has had a trial by fire kind of season as an NBA coach. Coaches are expected to talk to the media often, including up to three times a day on the road. In most places, though, they aren’t the lone spokesperson for the organization, as Miller has been for the Knicks. No Knicks executive has spoken to the media since the infamous Mills and Scott Perry press conference on Nov. 10. Since then the Knicks have fired a head coach, named an interim coach, mourned the loss of Kobe Bryant, saw Morris get national criticism for misogynistic comments, fired their team president, traded their best player, and had to watch an, umm, interesting national television appearance by Stoute. Miller has been the only non-player to talk about all of that on behalf of the team as the Knicks have allowed their media vacuum to balloon. That’s led to some awkward instances at times — why should the interim coach be the only one talking about why his boss was fired? — but Miller has handled it well, laconically discussing all of it. If he does get another head coaching job, at least he’ll be prepared for the public-facing aspect of it.
2. Robinson is the league-leader at the break in missed dunk attempts. He’s tied with the Nets’ Jarrett Allen. Last year he missed 25 all season, this season he’s already missed 22. Rudy Gobert has the most in a season over the last 11 years, missing 34 last season.
3. Two hundred and forty-three players have been on the floor for at least 800 minutes this season. When it comes to shooting, the Knicks are well represented at both poles of success. Robinson is tops among those 243 in true shooting percentage. The Knicks also have four of the 10 worst shooters by that metric. Payton has the third-lowest true shooting percentage of any player with at least 800 minutes, Barrett is fourth, Ntilikina is ninth, and Knox is 10th. No other team has more than three players in the bottom 50, while the Knicks have six.

hat means, in all likelihood, general manager Scott Perry will be looking for a new job, according to Steve Popper of Newsday.

?The first and most vital move for Rose is naming a general manager. That role is still occupied by Scott Perry, but he is not expected to survive the purge of the latest incarnation of the Knicks? rebuilding plans,? Popper wrote. ?Coach David Fizdale was ousted in December and team president Steve Mills followed last month. A source said Perry is not expected to last beyond his contract, which ends after this season.?

mafra said:

hat means, in all likelihood, general manager Scott Perry will be looking for a new job, according to Steve Popper of Newsday.

“The first and most vital move for Rose is naming a general manager. That role is still occupied by Scott Perry, but he is not expected to survive the purge of the latest incarnation of the Knicks’ rebuilding plans,” Popper wrote. “Coach David Fizdale was ousted in December and team president Steve Mills followed last month. A source said Perry is not expected to last beyond his contract, which ends after this season.”

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Not really news. Perry is only there because no one was minding the store and unlike Miller who has a slim chance of being named the new head coach because he's done a creditable job, you can't say the same for Perry. Have to blame Mills more so than Perry but Perry is Mills guy and Rose is going to want his guy installed. I mentioned Chris Wallace and he's a candidate along with Rich Cho.

tiger0330 said:

Not really news. Perry is only there because no one was minding the store and unlike Miller who has a slim chance of being named the new head coach because he's done a creditable job, you can't say the same for Perry. Have to blame Mills more so than Perry but Perry is Mills guy and Rose is going to want his guy installed. I mentioned Chris Wallace and he's a candidate along with Rich Cho.

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Perry doomed himself the moment he brought in his ORL guys. Mario and EP busted out in ORL and cost you a job, so why would you make it your first moves upon arrival at a new stop, to repeat your former mistakes. That showed me he was in over his head.

Plus, he got very little for future assets with a lot of vets that could?ve been dealt, from Voneleh to the cast of vets we have now.

Where was the bold move or fresh perspective? What did Scott bring to the table?

The argument could be made that he should?ve moved down after not getting a top 2 pick, and parlay that third pick into something bigger; Knox looks like an awful pick. He miscalculated the free agent landscape last summer to such a degree that he raised the bar of bafoon-ness,beyond the apex of Mt Everett, making the entire city - joke, the national punchline, where we all suffered in the face of derision.

Then there?s the KP trade. All in all, being that this was his what? Third stop, at least? To be this awful right out of the gate?

His saving grace is probably that he found MRob in the second round.

We are the number 1 DOOM organization in the NBA .. yeah, yeah WE are rebuilding again (3 years later) at the top of the organization looking for a new President (maybe Rose). It has become hard the past 20 seasons for owner Dolan to build a winning Knicks team having complete changes throughout the Knicks organization every 3 or 4 years.
Dolan should've stuck with Pat Riley in the 1990's !!!

mafra said:

Perry doomed himself the moment he brought in his ORL guys. Mario and EP busted out in ORL and cost you a job, so why would you make it your first moves upon arrival at a new stop, to repeat your former mistakes. That showed me he was in over his head.

Plus, he got very little for future assets with a lot of vets that could’ve been dealt, from Voneleh to the cast of vets we have now.

Where was the bold move or fresh perspective? What did Scott bring to the table?

The argument could be made that he should’ve moved down after not getting a top 2 pick, and parlay that third pick into something bigger; Knox looks like an awful pick. He miscalculated the free agent landscape last summer to such a degree that he raised the bar of bafoon-ness,beyond the apex of Mt Everett, making the entire city - joke, the national punchline, where we all suffered in the face of derision.

Then there’s the KP trade. All in all, being that this was his what? Third stop, at least? To be this awful right out of the gate?

His saving grace is probably that he found MRob in the second round.

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Kiyaman said:

We are the number 1 DOOM organization in the NBA .. yeah, yeah WE are rebuilding again (3 years later) at the top of the organization looking for a new President (maybe Rose). It has become hard the past 20 seasons for owner Dolan to build a winning Knicks team having complete changes throughout the Knicks organization every 3 or 4 years.
Dolan should've stuck with Pat Riley in the 1990's !!!

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My brother ran this by me the other day. He said "are sitting down". How about Jerry West?? We talk it out and the only thing I could come up with that would be a negative was his age. I threw this at him "how about his son". From all indications his is very knowledgeable like the daddy. Of course as you know this is my first picks for President or GM but I could live with West or Son.

Think about it and let me know what your thoughts are about West. If you answer and I don't see it Holla.

Dark Raider said:

100% agree with you on most of your points about Perry. Especially Super Mario and Payton.

I go back to the beginning with not signing D. Rose. This was a major mistake from the stand point of 'Who mentor your just draft PG'? Jarrett Jack, Seriously!!

How about tanking in the wrong draft(last year). To be fair, not only should he had traded back last year but also the year before(Knox at #9). Remember the #9 pick could have been a much higher pick had Horny no won those two games we should have lost. KP get hurt(that totally different story) and the F.O. doesn't march down to the coaches office and say 'don't try to win another game', PERIOD!! I think Knox was the right pick because Calipari knows talent... plus this was a C. Gaines pick not Perry/Mills. They kept Gaines there to help C. Robinson with the draft then showed him the door. Mills/Perry aren't smart enough to draft Knox and Robinson.

Good knowledgeable BB people will evaluate the talent on a team before making a decision on who stays or go. That will be Rose first test for being competent. LET ME GO ON RECORD NOW!! I don't see any knowledgeable BB(knows Talent) so far unless Calipari is hired. Even at that Calipari must be give the last word in drafting, FA and trades. Again I not on board with Rose because I see the same old stuff and that is trying to buy a team. I don't see them changing the image of this team, either. Let hope that I'm wrong but unless being cool now win BB games instead of talent and chemistry then nothing changed.​

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In the 2018 draft .. I wanted the Knicks to trade down to select Jaren Jackson Jr., or Marvin Bagley III.
Jaren Jackson Jr. had the best all-around B.ball IQ skills in college standing at 100%.
I was not interested in Trey or Doncic.
Knox is a work in progress, Knox performance were showing some good signs after Fizdale left, especially in the front-court lineup a long-side Portis, and MitchRob. The Knicks having Mook on the team was good for Knox, RJ, and clumsy Randle-Handle.

Wow! We Knick fans have to wait forever on whenever James Dolan feels like making the Knicks a .500 winning franchise .. This is the BIG APPLE! Either sell the team? Or hire (and draft) the right people whom winning percentage keep their jobs for SIX or more years.
Mills was not the right person for the job!
BUTT .. Firing Phil Jackson on the spot, then firing Mills on the spot .. without having a decent replacement to run a billion dollar franchise !!!
The reason why fans are saying "Sell the Team" !!!

It?s clear now that Knicks should?ve tried to trade up in that draft. Knox has been a disaster. Landry Fields was twice the player.

They should?ve taken Bridges. Either one!

Kiyaman said:

In the 2018 draft .. I wanted the Knicks to trade down to select Jaren Jackson Jr., or Marvin Bagley III.
Jaren Jackson Jr. had the best all-around B.ball IQ skills in college standing at 100%.
I was not interested in Trey or Doncic.
Knox is a work in progress, Knox performance were showing some good signs after Fizdale left, especially in the front-court lineup a long-side Portis, and MitchRob. The Knicks having Mook on the team was good for Knox, RJ, and clumsy Randle-Handle.

Wow! We Knick fans have to wait forever on whenever James Dolan feels like making the Knicks a .500 winning franchise .. This is the BIG APPLE! Either sell the team? Or hire (and draft) the right people whom winning percentage keep their jobs for SIX or more years.
Mills was not the right person for the job!
BUTT .. Firing Phil Jackson on the spot, then firing Mills on the spot .. without having a decent replacement to run a billion dollar franchise !!!
The reason why fans are saying "Sell the Team" !!!

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Trying to trade up to #3 for Jackson was exactly my thoughts. The only problem was we didn't have enough assets for that trade. UNLESS?? We could have pull off a trade( our #9 for 13th and 14th) with the Clippers for their two 1st rounder before the draft NOT ON DRAFT NIGHT. This would have given us assets and maybe a talking point is that Knox played at Kentucky and would be a drew for Memphis. NOT SAYING THEY WOULD GO FOR IT BUT TRY.

Next part is the if Memphis didn't make the trade we could have gotten Knox anyway and then MPJ would have fell into our lap. So look at were we would be with both Knox, MPJ and Robinson
.
Agreed not interested in Trey or Doncic.

Then you take last year draft and trade back with ATL(for there two picks) and hope they were interested in RJ. Then we could have Hayes, Paschall, Walker, or MFiondu Kal. Getting 3 of those 4 players give us a very young nucleus to develop. Just think of the team with Frank, Dotson, Knox, MPJ, Robinson, Trier, Jason Hayes, Walker, Paschall or MFiondu. Not to mention if we had a F.O. that knew how to deal with KP.

Correct Mills was not the right person for the job. Neither was Perry!!!

Not sold on Rose. WWW and how things are developing now. No 'Real BB' knowledgeable people that I can see. No Thib, No JVG(definitely not him) his brother yeah, No Jay. The only person I'm high on is Calipari and he isn't coming.

As I said you know who I want.

Oakley?s lawsuit against Dolan and MSG thrown out by a judge.