trey Attempts to Write
TKW Mailbag: Take Two
Our social editor takes a few minutes off from Twitter to answer viewer mail, er, I mean online questions, it is the 21st century after all
I am back with more answers for the questions that were asked to me on the Twitter dot com.
So without any further adieu, here we go.
Tank or try, huh? Easy. Tank. The Knicks should actively lose games by playing D-League (are they the G-League yet?) guys trying to look for a diamond in the rough. For better or worse the Knicks will not do this because, well, they’re the Knicks. Dolan will not let his franchise lose games by fielding a subpar roster even if it means maximizing the future of the roster. There’s no point in making the playoffs. None.
The only thing that does is get Derrick Rose a bigger contract and perhaps allows him to re-sign here in NY. Not good. The playoffs are fun, normally, but when your team is just there to get swept out of the first round by the reigning champs? Nah. I’m good on that. Stay low and build. Get the highest pick possible, stay in the lottery, build your future. Playoff experience is invaluable for a guy like Kristaps Porzingis but building a solid roster around him is more important at this juncture.
Riiiiiiiiiiiiings! He’s got the winning pedigree! He knows what it’s like to win championships! He knows what it takes! What the team needs!
But really, he was offered five years to come in and right the ship that is the Knicks. His best skill has been drafting and the previous front office regime left him no picks to do that with. He’s damn near lost every trade he’s done. He’s openly spoken poorly about former players. It’s been a mess. And the guy above him, the guy who empowered him, has somehow managed to do an even worse job! Imagine that. Couldn’t be me.
Joakim Noah is the worst contract in the NBA, with all due respect to Luol Deng and the Lakers. I have a tweet from the beginning of the season that Noah will be wearing Jerome James’s number and that was supposed to be a light hearted and playful joke. It’s a sad reminder now of not just how bad Noah is but that the no. 13 might actually be a curse. At this point, without looking, would you be shocked if Noah did not exceed 82 games during his contract? He definitely will, right? Right? He’s at 46 right now and is presumably shut down for the rest of this season. With little hope of a full recovery, and continued health, it’s extremely worrisome that Noah plays less than 100 games with the franchise. Combine the lack of health and that he’s being thoroughly overpaid, he’s a dead weight contract.
It’s safe to assume that at this point the only way to deal Noah is to include a pick. I don’t think that’s a trade that should be made. I sure hope it’s not. Will the new CBA allow for an amnesty? Please? Noah would be a prime candidate for that. I have no idea how the CBA works (Editor’s note: give the new CBA a brisk read over here!).
I have no idea. He’s a bad basketball player in the year 2017. To be clear I am talking about Derrick Martell Rose. I expected him to be bought out before Brandon Jennings, although I do understand that Jennings asked for it. I do not think Rose will ask for a buyout because he needs to up numbers for that contract he gets this summer. Sasha Vujacic is an interesting case to me. I’ve often said that Vujacic should not be on the roster. I do understand him being around the team for the simple fact that the young international guys (Porzingis, Hernangomez, Kuzminskas) all gravitate towards him and see him as a role model. He knows what it’s like to come to the USA to play basketball and life this lifestyle.
However, if that and the Triangle are the only reasons he’s here, though, why not just make him a coach? Or give him some kind of advisory role? He’s a roster spot that should be used on a project player who Jackson see some sort of potential in.
I, admittedly, have watched zero college basketball. Not a second. I am firmly against the NCAA not paying their athletes. It’s really just me picking and choosing where I want to make a stance on morality.
Anyway, from everything I hear the NC State point guard Dennis Smith, Jr. sounds like he’s really good. Hearing the same for Kansas wing player Josh Jackson. I have no idea how he projects at the next level but I saw Tyler Lydon play basketball when he was in high school like 30 minutes away from me. That was a couple years ago now but he’s at Syracuse doing pretty well. Malik Monk is another guy I’ve often seen on my Twitter feed. I’ll always trust a Calipari product. Speaking of, when was the last time a Calipari product did not go in the top five? It might be this year.
To be clear Derrick Rose should get the veteran’s minimum. He won’t. Some team will overpay for him, I am sure of it. Which essentially boils down to Derrick Rose will be paid higher than the league minimum. I really, really, hope it’s not the Knicks that do this. Looking at the contracts from last summer and I think he gets about $14 million per season. That’s the same amount per season that Rajon Rondo fetched last year from Chicago. That feels about right. Both are guys that peaked many years ago and do not actively help their current teams win but carry some name value still.
As far as the Knicks going forward, I’d prefer their starting point guard next season is a rookie. Most notably one of Fultz, Ball, or Smith, Jr. (not to be confused with former Knick J.R. Smith). There’s a higher chance NY falls outside of the top five which would mean those guys won’t be here. With little PG prospects remaining, Jackson will have to turn to free agency. Assume Jrue Holiday is off the board because NOLA just acquired Boogie Cousins. George Hill reportedly won’t be reach an extension in Utah. He’s a guy Jackson should target if he reaches the free agency market. As far as the rest of potential free agents, Patty Mills might be the best option. If Mills is your starter, yikes.
— trey teamer, social media editor
Thanks trey for joining us in a platform that features more than 140 characters. Follow The Knicks Wall on Facebook and Twitter and listen to the TKW Podcast on SoundCloud! Send your questions through social media and TKWPodcast@gmail.com. Check back in a few weeks for another edition of the mailbag.
