We are close to having a breakthrough, we could have easily won both these games against two good teams, and I have to admit, if you're going to point the finger anywhere it has to be at RJ Barrett.
I think what is coming now that both Grimes and Reddish are healthy, is that Thibs is going to use both of those guys to squeeze minutes out of Barrett. Thibs has babied him more than a little bit, part of that was because of his potential, but an equal part of it was because his rookie season was a disaster for both the player and the team, so they had to rebuild his confidence, but I think its time for some tough love.
I think a big part of how his development has been lacking is attributable to the fact that he grew up a little bit privileged, compared to the background of other players, so he doesn't have that burning desire to be the best. Maybe if Grimes gets hot with his shot, and 6 weeks ago I would have been shocked to hear myself say it, but if Reddish is healthy he has to play, he has been the catalyst, so maybe all of the sudden Barrett gets hit with adversity for the first time in his life when he finds himself only getting 18 minutes and on the bench in crunch time. We shall see how he responds, I think he will respond favorably, but we shall see, but that's what I think is coming.
I'd like to see you address at some point the contractual aspects of the Fournier situation, as it certainly appears that he is perminently burried. What do you think of the viability of letting him waste away on the bench for a few months to motivate him into taking a buyout? If they cut him loose in February and paid him in full for this season, do you think Fournier would take $5M out of the $18M owed for next season to just walk away? From Fournier's perspective, he has to see the writing on the wall. He isn't going to play major minutes anywhere else but a bottom feeder in the NBA, so if the Knicks give him $5M to walk away, he can probably make at least $10M playing on a top team in Europe, where he's home and he will be treated as royalty. Just wondering what your thoughts are on that. That would save us $13M in cap money for next season.
We got the Pistons comming up, and we need it because we have the Bucks after that. December looks to be much more favorable, especially the later in the calendar we get. 9-6 on the month looks possible.
Nov 28, 2022·edited Nov 28, 2022Liked by Jonathan Macri
Was a good loss. I throughly enjoyed the game and that thought they played well. "what if Grimes finsihed" was the only what if. While I think he could have made the difference on Jah (his ability to recover after getting screened is incredible) I can't blame Thibs for letting Barrett finish a game he played well in coming off such a struggle.
On the other hand I also listened to your post game and one follower said something like if Barrett and Randle aren't going to defend and cant space the floor for Brunson why do they finish every night? I couldn't agree with this comment more. Jon and Jeremy seemed to think that the defenence we show them is normal. IDK. These guys have one all star visit and one play off apperence b/t them. The all-star followed it up with one of the worst seasons of basketball anyone has ever played. I would have given Barrett the nod last night and Julius as well but overall they are more like Duncan Robinson then Jimmy and Bam and I think the team feels a little stuck because it lives in this werid conservative denial rather then b/c of the roster
Thibs decided to go with Cam on Morant in the 4th and you can understand the man opting for the potential offense Cam brings, but only Grimes stands a chance of staying with Ja in those first few steps. Cam just doesn't have that kind of foot speed. He killed us with assists last night, and the scoring wasn't too shabby. And always that smile. He may be the happiest assassin in the NBA.
With Fournier, yes most definitely he will be easy to move in the off-season with an expiring contract. That’s a given. However, I think the fact that they haven’t put him back on the court at all is the tell. They want him to be unhappy. If he takes a deal in Europe, and it makes him financially whole, why does he even want to stay in the NBA at this point if he isn’t going to have a meaningful role on a winning team?
Also wouldn’t be surprised if Rose is a buyout candidate at this point, and he ends up in Milwaukee as a backup to chase a ring one last time.
I think the Knicks make their big move at the deadline rather than waiting for the offseason, and one component is those two guys moving out and getting bought out. Another component is draft picks. I would assume that at least one core player would be moving out, be it Randle, Robinson, or Barrett.
I have no idea what deal they would make, and it would have to be multiple teams, there are a lot of rumors out there, Indy and SA are the only teams that can take contracts, there is Jae Crowder, talk of Collins on the move in Atlanta.
Right now, all we can do is sit tight for about 6 weeks and let the market develop, but there will be opportunities.
KFS have you ever considered that our two most perplexing players are RJ and JR? R and J, J and R? Our previous love/hate player was J R Smith. We were all excited about dennis smith JR. Is anyone with me?
Thank MF God for Brunson. Can you imagine where they would be if they didn't pull that signing off? I caved in and signed up for the NBA package so I can now watch and commiserate around all Knick games. What jumped out at me most in this game is how slow RJ looks now. He looks like he's got a few extra matzah balls in his shoes every time he elevates and doesn't nearly reach where you expect the rest of his body to go. Seems like conditioning to me and as many have noted, he put on too much "muscle" in the offseason. My glass is half full view of this team, is that no matter the result...there's something to feel good about every night. They either win and get some winning motions under their belt for future development or they lose and get that many more ping pong balls. Truly... neither matter that much. The FO did what it was supposed to in holding on to picks, adding young potential and stockpiling as much talent as they could gather (regardless of fit). The next phase is paring off overloaded positions and creating the roster they/we truly want. The clear albatross is the Randle contract, but they bit like we all did on that one inspiring season of effort meeting talent. I can't blame them for making the decision to lock him up at what seemed a reasonable price at the time. Hindsight and revisionist history is fruitless at this point. No reason to panic and burn valued assets to couple with him simply to unload him. It's frustrating to watch, but this is where we are. Hope that right deal comes along soon.
Nov 28, 2022·edited Nov 28, 2022Liked by Jonathan Macri
when can we start the KAT rumor mill'?
i know it cant happen until after new years (fast approaching yiikes!!) and i've always thought Towns was too mentally weak for NYC since the Emotional Friend talk at Kentucky. but if feels like that is where things are lining up//
Jon, I have an observation and if you think it has merit, maybe you could confirm, but please do not dig into this if it is no value to you, I am just offering this as something that may be interesting. The gave we all went to at MSG (which was a blast, thank you!) I noticed Obi was playing well, I think he was 4 of 5, 10 points in 15 minutes. When Thibs took him out in the 4th, he seemed really upset on the sideline. It turns out that I do not think he has played well since. Up until that point this season I think Thibs was wrong for playing Obi so little. But since then, Obi has been as bad as Julius. What do you think?
We are close to having a breakthrough, we could have easily won both these games against two good teams, and I have to admit, if you're going to point the finger anywhere it has to be at RJ Barrett.
I think what is coming now that both Grimes and Reddish are healthy, is that Thibs is going to use both of those guys to squeeze minutes out of Barrett. Thibs has babied him more than a little bit, part of that was because of his potential, but an equal part of it was because his rookie season was a disaster for both the player and the team, so they had to rebuild his confidence, but I think its time for some tough love.
I think a big part of how his development has been lacking is attributable to the fact that he grew up a little bit privileged, compared to the background of other players, so he doesn't have that burning desire to be the best. Maybe if Grimes gets hot with his shot, and 6 weeks ago I would have been shocked to hear myself say it, but if Reddish is healthy he has to play, he has been the catalyst, so maybe all of the sudden Barrett gets hit with adversity for the first time in his life when he finds himself only getting 18 minutes and on the bench in crunch time. We shall see how he responds, I think he will respond favorably, but we shall see, but that's what I think is coming.
I'd like to see you address at some point the contractual aspects of the Fournier situation, as it certainly appears that he is perminently burried. What do you think of the viability of letting him waste away on the bench for a few months to motivate him into taking a buyout? If they cut him loose in February and paid him in full for this season, do you think Fournier would take $5M out of the $18M owed for next season to just walk away? From Fournier's perspective, he has to see the writing on the wall. He isn't going to play major minutes anywhere else but a bottom feeder in the NBA, so if the Knicks give him $5M to walk away, he can probably make at least $10M playing on a top team in Europe, where he's home and he will be treated as royalty. Just wondering what your thoughts are on that. That would save us $13M in cap money for next season.
We got the Pistons comming up, and we need it because we have the Bucks after that. December looks to be much more favorable, especially the later in the calendar we get. 9-6 on the month looks possible.
Was a good loss. I throughly enjoyed the game and that thought they played well. "what if Grimes finsihed" was the only what if. While I think he could have made the difference on Jah (his ability to recover after getting screened is incredible) I can't blame Thibs for letting Barrett finish a game he played well in coming off such a struggle.
On the other hand I also listened to your post game and one follower said something like if Barrett and Randle aren't going to defend and cant space the floor for Brunson why do they finish every night? I couldn't agree with this comment more. Jon and Jeremy seemed to think that the defenence we show them is normal. IDK. These guys have one all star visit and one play off apperence b/t them. The all-star followed it up with one of the worst seasons of basketball anyone has ever played. I would have given Barrett the nod last night and Julius as well but overall they are more like Duncan Robinson then Jimmy and Bam and I think the team feels a little stuck because it lives in this werid conservative denial rather then b/c of the roster
Thibs decided to go with Cam on Morant in the 4th and you can understand the man opting for the potential offense Cam brings, but only Grimes stands a chance of staying with Ja in those first few steps. Cam just doesn't have that kind of foot speed. He killed us with assists last night, and the scoring wasn't too shabby. And always that smile. He may be the happiest assassin in the NBA.
With Fournier, yes most definitely he will be easy to move in the off-season with an expiring contract. That’s a given. However, I think the fact that they haven’t put him back on the court at all is the tell. They want him to be unhappy. If he takes a deal in Europe, and it makes him financially whole, why does he even want to stay in the NBA at this point if he isn’t going to have a meaningful role on a winning team?
Also wouldn’t be surprised if Rose is a buyout candidate at this point, and he ends up in Milwaukee as a backup to chase a ring one last time.
I think the Knicks make their big move at the deadline rather than waiting for the offseason, and one component is those two guys moving out and getting bought out. Another component is draft picks. I would assume that at least one core player would be moving out, be it Randle, Robinson, or Barrett.
I have no idea what deal they would make, and it would have to be multiple teams, there are a lot of rumors out there, Indy and SA are the only teams that can take contracts, there is Jae Crowder, talk of Collins on the move in Atlanta.
Right now, all we can do is sit tight for about 6 weeks and let the market develop, but there will be opportunities.
KFS have you ever considered that our two most perplexing players are RJ and JR? R and J, J and R? Our previous love/hate player was J R Smith. We were all excited about dennis smith JR. Is anyone with me?
Thank MF God for Brunson. Can you imagine where they would be if they didn't pull that signing off? I caved in and signed up for the NBA package so I can now watch and commiserate around all Knick games. What jumped out at me most in this game is how slow RJ looks now. He looks like he's got a few extra matzah balls in his shoes every time he elevates and doesn't nearly reach where you expect the rest of his body to go. Seems like conditioning to me and as many have noted, he put on too much "muscle" in the offseason. My glass is half full view of this team, is that no matter the result...there's something to feel good about every night. They either win and get some winning motions under their belt for future development or they lose and get that many more ping pong balls. Truly... neither matter that much. The FO did what it was supposed to in holding on to picks, adding young potential and stockpiling as much talent as they could gather (regardless of fit). The next phase is paring off overloaded positions and creating the roster they/we truly want. The clear albatross is the Randle contract, but they bit like we all did on that one inspiring season of effort meeting talent. I can't blame them for making the decision to lock him up at what seemed a reasonable price at the time. Hindsight and revisionist history is fruitless at this point. No reason to panic and burn valued assets to couple with him simply to unload him. It's frustrating to watch, but this is where we are. Hope that right deal comes along soon.
Think of this:
they are playing (almost) 500 ball with the worst 3 point shooting in the league.
When/if the shots drop, the consistent winning should come, no?
Effort matters.
Growth, too.
Thanks.
What a perfectly cromulent newsletter! (Just kidding. It was awesome!)
when can we start the KAT rumor mill'?
i know it cant happen until after new years (fast approaching yiikes!!) and i've always thought Towns was too mentally weak for NYC since the Emotional Friend talk at Kentucky. but if feels like that is where things are lining up//
maybe something built around Randle to Minney?
Jon, I have an observation and if you think it has merit, maybe you could confirm, but please do not dig into this if it is no value to you, I am just offering this as something that may be interesting. The gave we all went to at MSG (which was a blast, thank you!) I noticed Obi was playing well, I think he was 4 of 5, 10 points in 15 minutes. When Thibs took him out in the 4th, he seemed really upset on the sideline. It turns out that I do not think he has played well since. Up until that point this season I think Thibs was wrong for playing Obi so little. But since then, Obi has been as bad as Julius. What do you think?