Just when everyone thought the New York Knicks were finally back on track, their U-turn caught people off guard.
In the summer of 2022, the level of activity of the New York Knicks is shocking.
Through multiple transactions, they have become the most active team in the market at this stage. But these operations don't always turn out for the best.
Looking at the past 5 seasons, New York has only played well in 1 season. Randall , Barrett and Rose made the playoffs once, and were eliminated by the Eagles, who had a stronger offense. After that, every operation they made basically led them to a worse place instead of a better place.
One of the mistakes of the Knicks : Crazy signing of guards
The Knicks' first mistake was that they spent a lot of meaningless money to sign guards.
For example, they found French defender Fournier and signed a four-year, 73 million contract in the summer of 2021. Last season, Fournier also played at a good level. He averaged 29.5 minutes per game and was the absolute main force. His average of 14.1 points per game was also an important scoring point for the Knicks.
But the problem with the Knicks is that if the team wants to go further, is not a necessary option for a mature backcourt musketeer.
Neither Fournier nor Kemba Walker can solve the fundamental answer to the Knicks' offensive problem.
Barrett is growing very fast and has become the first core player on the offensive end. However, Randall still firmly controls the top spot on the offensive end, and the more stubborn his hand becomes, the more stubborn he becomes.
made another mistake, frantically clearing space just for Brunson
By the end of this season, the Knicks had actually reached a very passive point. They have few options left and limited room for maneuver: if anyone is willing to take over Randall's job, it seems very unlikely.
The Knicks' choice is to move space and pursue Brunson, who is not tall but has performed ideally in this playoff trip.
In order to keep a place for Brunson, the Knicks made several unusual transactions. Burks and Noel were traded to the Pistons. So far, they have sent out this year's No. 11 pick, four second rounds, and said goodbye to Walker, Burks and Noel.
and intends to give Brunson a larger contract of more than $100 million over four years.
is not likely to be worth the money. Brunson has benefited greatly from the playoff journey of the Mavericks , which was super valuable in the first round.
If the second leader of a strong Western Conference team averaging 21.6 points per game can be won with an annual salary of less than 30 million, it does not seem to be a huge disadvantage. But if this person is called Jaylen Brunson , then this matter really needs to be thought about carefully.
When meeting the Jazz, every defender has the potential to explode
When does Brunson play his best? When facing the Jazz, he scored 24, 41, and 31 points in the first three games with ultra-high efficiency, becoming the "Mr. Wonder" of the Mavericks.
But the "moisture" is too obvious. The Jazz's backcourt is notoriously poor in defense in the league, and they have to spend a lot of energy on the defensive end to pay attention to Doncic.
's encounter with the Warriors illustrates the problem even more. In 3 of the 5 games, Brunson could only score 15 points or less. When the Mavericks were in desperate need of fire support, Brunson was struggling under the Warriors' high-quality defense.
On the defensive end, it will be more difficult for the Knicks next season.
The law of "defense wins championships" is still valid, but the Knicks may have forgotten about it.
Compared with their offensive talent, the New York Knicks' defense has been lagging behind. If they really find Brunson, their defense will fall even further.
Every offseason, the Knicks has always been "big thunder but little rain". The free market was super active in signings, but in the end they all missed out on superstars. It can be said to be a model of rebuilding every year.
So far, they haven't done much different.
