New York Knicks

2016-17: 31-51, 12th in the East

Payroll: $106,729,573

NBA Draft:

#8- Frank Ntilikina PG

#44- Damyean Dotson- SG

#58- Ognjen Jaramaz- SG

Free Agency:

IN: Tim Hardaway Jr. (4 years, $71 mil); Ron Baker (re-signed 2 years, $8.9 mil);
Ramon Sessions (1 year, $2.3 mil); Michael Beasley (1 year, $2.1 mil)

OUT: Derrick Rose, Brandon Jennings, Justin Holiday, Maurice Ndour, Sasha
Vujacic, Marshall Plumlee

Analysis:

There was quite a bit more smoke than fire to yet another tumultuous Knicks
offseason, as Carmelo Anthony still remains on the team (much to the chagrin of
mostly everyone). Anthonys trade saga, as well as Kristaps Porzingiss happiness,
remain as the delayed focal points of Phil Jacksons final blubbering act as team
president. While its head-scratching to think about why Jackson waited until after
the Draft to resign, the organization is still in a bad place as long as Jim Dolan
owns the team. This was even more evident after the Zen Master exited stage left,
as Steve Mills, who hadnt shown himself to be deserving of a high profile position
in an NBA front office, went out and signed Ron Baker, a fringe NBA player, and
Tim Hardaway Jr., a gunner who the team traded away only a year and a half ago,
to deals above market value.
 The Knicks FO continually acts as the biggest impediment to the franchises
ascent. Despite the praise drawn from hiring Scott Perry as the new GM, the
incumbent trio of Dolan, Mills, and head coach Jeff Hornacek dull any sense of
optimism Knicks fans might have. Hornacek is by no means a bad coach, and he
was put in an awkward position last year with the Triangle brouhaha, but he is far
from the top of the list of coaches anyone would be confident in to guide a team of
young players and advance a rebuild.

Of course, the reality of a rebuild looms, but wont begin until Carmelo is
moved elsewhere and Joakim Noah stops getting playing time, contract be damned.
Melo deserved much better than what hes gotten and the Knicks deserve every
ounce of shame for giving him a no-trade clause, but the sooner something logical
is done to move him the better the league will be for it; having New Yorks primary
team act incompetently isnt ideal for the league, but it has survivedhaving a
season-long staring contest between said team and a future HOFer might leave a
dent however.

This is not to say they should help the Rockets dump Ryan Andersons
contract howevereven smart organizations need to held accountable for their bad
movesbut if NY thinks it will get anything better than a middling 1st round pick
or maybe a role player for Melo, this crisis will extend indefinitely.

Looking to the future, this team is all about Porzingis (hopefully with
sidekick roles for Willy Hernangomez & Frank Ntilikina). Their growth this season
will be the main thing to watch, as an unexpected playoff run would likely
culminate in an appearance as a zombie 7 or 8 seed. To facilitate their growth and
some winning, this team needs to get serious about its defense and fundamentals.
Many of these problems stemmed from Derrick Roses presence last year, but a
111.5 defensive rating is going to lead you nowhere, and an iso-heavy offense isnt
going to do anyone much good either. The mediocre offense numbers will take a
hit as well if Melo goes, but that opens the door for the offense to flow more
through KP, whos shown a keen awareness on offense when not forced to stand in
the corner.

Much of the season will likely hinge on the backcourt, between the situation
at PG and how much Ntilikina is allowed to learn on the jobwhich he absolutely
should be, considering this teams expectations and his defensive and spot-up
shooting potentialand Hardaways transformation into something resembling a
$15 million a year player. His maturation into a legitimate NBA player the past
season and a half was admirable, but even at the training academy that is the
Atlanta Hawks, his defensive concentration and awareness are still lacking. If he
tries to be an offense-oriented lead ball-handler this season, things will get ugly
fast. The Knicks wing depth is pitifulonly recently expanded by a collection of
unremarkable undrafted rookiesso there isnt really the option to bench him if
his gunner tendencies take over, but he definitely needs to be held in check by
Hornacek. If he isnt, his contract combined with Noahs will sink the Knicks for
the next 3 years.

Player to Watch: Kristaps Porzingis

I purposefully left out KPs role in the analysis to delve deeper here. He is
truly a unicorn. He has the skills and the mindset to be the lead guy on a good
Knicks team, but he needs to keep improving. When you scan the Knicks roster,
its Porzingis whose name jumps out, despite his already glowing reputation. In his
first two seasons, hes shown good playmaking ability and a level of selflessness in
his handling of his role alongside Melo (and unfortunately, Rose last year). Hes
ready now for a bigger role facilitating the offense, but more importantly, his
defense has to get better.

While still extremely young at 22, his body up to now hasnt been fully
ready for rim protector duties or the physicality of the low post. Being a good
center defensively isnt just about blocks (just ask Andre Drummond), its about
positioning, timing, and controlling your ground. If KPs rim protection and pick-
&-roll defense jump to the next level, he can unlock his potential stardom and be a
top 15 player in the league. It will be near impossible for him to clean up all the
messes that are surely going to come his way in the paint this season, but watching
how he responds to the challenge and how his body holds up over the course of the
year will be paramount.
Imaginary Prop Bet: O/U 1.5 Jim Dolan-related scandals this season

Prediction: 32-50, 11th in the East