Diamonds in the Rough?
Taking Advantage of the Knicks’ Best Asset: Player Development
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This season, I’ve written about some of the Knicks lesser known players and the skill-sets they bring to the team. Willy Hernangomez, a 2nd round pick, has been one of the most effective rookies in the league. Justin Holiday is the only Knick not to miss a game this season, and has been the team’s most consistent perimeter defender.
Over the past few weeks, the departure of Brandon Jennings has opened up playing time for Ron Baker and the newly re-acquired Chasson Randle. Baker and Randle have taken advantage of that time to showcase their abilities on both ends of the floor. Lance Thomas has returned from injuries, and put together another consistent stretch of excellent defense and three-point shooting. Joakim Noah’s knee surgery allowed Porzingis to spend additional minutes at center, and Thomas, who is likely the team’s best defender, to get experience in the starting lineup.
These unheralded players, all 27 or younger, have blossomed in New York’s environment in Phil Jackson’s tenure. Along with the players mentioned above, Langston Galloway emerged on a 10-day contract in the Knicks woeful 2014–15 campaign, and while he got away from the team, he has solidified himself as an NBA-level rotation guard. The Knicks’ development staff has done an excellent job in identifying young talent on the fringes of the league and helping them find a niche in which to be successful. In the Jackson era, the Knicks’ biggest strength is player development, and capitalizing on that asset will prove fruitful in their rebuilding effort.
Chasson Randle
Randle was part of the Knicks roster this summer, where he shot the lights out of the Orlando Summer League. In three games with the Knicks, he shot 20 of 42 from the field and 11 of 20 from three-point range, along with 15 assists, 13 rebounds, nine steals and two blocks. Offensively, Randle showed an affinity for the long-ball, as well as the ability to knock down jumpers both off the catch and off-screens, highlighted by impressive touch around the rim with both hands, which he has brought with him to the NBA.
He displayed quick hands defensively, moved his feet well and had excellent instincts for collapsing on passing lanes and disrupting an opponent’s dribble. In limited time, this has also translated to the NBA. While Augustin’s drive below is not particularly forceful, simple blow-bys on the perimeter have been an Achilles heel of the Knicks defense all season.
Randle is back with the Knicks after a solid D-League campaign, where he shot 40% from three on over six attempts per game, and was a consistent scorer despite a high turnover rate. In his first extended minutes against Orlando, Randle once again displayed high IQ defensively as well as the ability to beat defenders off the dribble and run a stable offense.
Randle can handle the ball in pick-and-roll, delivering the pocket pass through two defenders for a spot-up jumper, or driving past his defender and hitting the roll-man on the trailer.
He has a knack for keeping a play alive, and has impressive court vision. He also can collapse a defense off the dribble and hit cutters with ease while on the move.
Much of the Knicks problems defensively stem from their inability to stop the ball on the perimeter, and their lack of effort to fight through screens causing mismatches on unnecessary switches. Randle alleviates these issues with his ball pressure and quickness fighting over screens. He also knows when to help off poor shooters effectively to help force turnovers.
Randle is unpolished, especially as a distributor, however, he has a lot going for him as a young point guard. He is a consistent shooter, can push the pace, handle in pick-and-roll, defend opposing ball-handlers, and has played with a high motor whenever he’s seen floor time. While the Knicks played a risky game allowing him to briefly slip away to Philadelphia, Randle has a partial guarantee for next season, and could very well be a promising development project for a Knicks team bereft of young guards.
Ron Baker
Before the trade deadline, I recommended New York move Jennings with the goal of seeing more from Ron Baker. Although Jennings was not traded, Baker has entered the Knicks’ rotation since he was waived. Baker has averaged 18 minutes per game in the Knicks past five outings, and as predicted, their defense has improved.
Baker has a 104.2 defensive rating the past five games, four points better per 100 possessions than the Knicks’ 25th ranked defense, and if one discounts the day of Jennings’ waiver, the team is almost net-even when Baker is on the floor. In his four March games, the Knicks have a 104.3 ORtg and 104.9 DRtg when Baker plays, and his impact on the game cannot go unnoticed.
Since Jennings left the team, Baker has a 13.8% defensive rebounding percentage and an 8.7% overall percentage, the marks of an elite rebounding guard. The only point guards with higher overall rebounding percentages this season are Russell Westbrook, Giannis, James Harden, Michael Carter-Williams, Patrick Beverley, Rajon Rondo and Chris Paul. He has an excellent instinct for the ball and his activity lets him snag opportunities while other guards are caught sleeping.
Baker is a significantly better passer than Derrick Rose, has excellent awareness of his teammates positioning, and is comfortable handling in pick-and-roll.
He pressures ball-handlers at the point of attack, is adept at forcing turnovers and is efficient in transition. Baker has not shot well this season, however, he shoots with a low volume, and teams respect his range. He also is an active cutter offensively and can finish around the rim with contact.
Baker’s defensive intensity and skills at distributing the ball make him an effective bench guard as a rookie, and he has potential to develop into a rotation combo-guard with two-way prowess.
Lance Thomas
In his first three and a half seasons in the NBA, Lance Thomas attempted a measly two three-pointers. Since joining the Knicks, he has shot 198 threes in 138 games at a 41% clip. In 2016–17, he’s 31–68 from deep (45.6%), and has been particularly adept from the corner.
He has started 41 games for New York, many next to Carmelo Anthony, where he is content to chase an opponent’s top wing defensively over screens and challenge the player in isolation. His offensive game is funky, and includes an awkward dribble-drive floater following a close-out, along with a decent pull up mid-range jumper.
Despite the occasional clunkiness, his three-point consistency and activity on defense have made his four-year, $27 million contract signed this summer look like a bargain.
Thomas is a menace as an on-ball defender. He has active hands, a high motor, and often finds himself as the sole Knick diving for loose balls.
Due to his below-average athleticism and quickness, Thomas has found his place in the NBA through sheer effort and understanding of scheme, and consistently finds himself in the right place on either end of the floor. He’s struggled with injuries this season, mainly an orbital fracture and plantar fasciitis, though the Knicks were wise to bring him back slowly off the foot problem, and he has excelled in his time in the starting lineup, and has generally played more efficiently under extended minutes.
Since the All-Star Break, Thomas has started six games for New York, and the team has a Defensive Rating of 105.3 with him on the floor. Like Baker, when Thomas plays, the Knicks are a decent squad defensively. They move their feet, disrupt passing lanes, stay in front of dribble-drives, and close-out hard on threes.
Moving forward, the Knicks need to maximize the playing time of their role-players that play net-positive defense, namely Randle, Baker, Thomas and Justin Holiday. The more these players see the floor with the likes of Courtney Lee, Willy Hernangomez, Kristaps Porzingis and Carmelo Anthony, the more balanced the Knicks become defensively, which will do a tremendous amount to effect the outcome of their games.
All season, the Knicks have lacked resistance at the point of attack with Derrick Rose as their initial ball-stopper for opposing point guards. This consistently leads to breakdowns in communication and busted rotations. The practice of simply preventing opposing guards from easily getting to their spots will do wonders to help the Knicks defense. Incredibly, the pieces are already in place. The next step for New York is not to splurge on big-name free agent talents with scoring prowess. The most prudent move ahead focuses on their long maligned defense, and maximizes their best asset, player development, by trusting the young players who have risen in New York to grow into more significant roles on the team.
