As the Knicks' season approaches, there has been a lot of attention on the moves this past summer made by team president Steve Mills and general manager Scott Perry. Others are looking ahead and wondering how David Fizdale might utilize the roster provided to him, and if he can establish an identity for this team.
Ironically, none of those three might be the most important person in the Knicks' front office during the next two seasons. In an under the radar move, the Knicks hired Craig Robinson to be their Vice President of Player Development on August 8th, 2017. As the Knicks peer into the future, there will be nothing more important than how they are able to develop their youngsters into high-level NBA rotation players, or even All-Stars.
The Knicks additions this offseason, aside from Julius Randle, are not much more than rent-a-players. Elfrid Payton, Bobby Portis, Taj Gibson, Wayne Ellington, Reggie Bullock and Marcus Morris all have only one guaranteed year on their contracts. All but Morris can be brought back for a second season, or they can be jettisoned for cap space next summer.
Younger players in that group, like Payton and Portis, still have room to improve and might end up warranting a second year or even a new contract. Their realistic upsides, however, are limited. Aside from helping to win more games in the short term to prove the Knicks are on a true path to better things, which is important, nearly all of their additions aside from Julius Randle this summer aren't going to be big parts of the roster if and when the Knicks truly turn things around.
Who might be? Mitchell Robinson, so might RJ Barrett. Dennis Smith Jr. has a chance, as does Kevin Knox. Frank Ntilikina showed he still has something left in the tank playing for the France National Team at the FIBA World Cup. 2019 second-round pick Ignas Brazdeikis showed he has NBA skills in Summer League. All of those players are 21-years-old or younger.
Then there's Allonzo Trier, 23-years-old, and Damyean Dotson, who is 25. Both players are on the last year of their contracts and could stick long term with the Knicks. Despite being one of the most efficient scorers in the league last year, Julius Randle is still only 24-years-old. Even of the one or two-year rental players, Elfrid Payton is only 25, and Bobby Portis is just 24. None of those players are finished products, and what they become and how quickly they do it will ultimately determine the success of this Knicks front office and their rebuild.
It is on Craig Robinson, his methods and program, along with David Fizdale and his staff to turn that group of young players into difference-making NBA players. Finding a superstar in the NBA is the hardest thing for a franchise to do. While the Knicks may have another chance to sign superstar free agents in the coming summers, it is more important for at least one of their in-house players to develop into an All-Star caliber player.
It would help attract other free agents, and show them the Knicks system knows how to build a roster and turn draft picks into good NBA players. The way the Nets brought along Caris Lavert and D'Angelo Russell was eye-opening to other players around the league and made the Nets a desirable destination. It is exactly what the Knicks have to do with Smith, Barrett and their other high draft picks. Not all of them are going to hit the way fans expect, but someone on this team needs to become someone you can give the ball to late in the game and expect them to create a bucket for themselves or someone else.
Whether or not the Knicks staff is capable of developing players remains to be seen. Mitchell Robinson seemed to make strides last year, and Kevin Knox played well in the season's final month. We'll see what happens outside of a small sample size. True skill development, however, happens in the offseason, and how those players come back this season, along with Smith Jr., Ntilikina, Trier and Dotson will be very telling as to whether the Knicks methods are working.
Do the Knicks understand that Kevin Knox's future is at power forward? Do they truly know what Dennis Smith Jr. has to do to emerge as a starting-caliber point guard at a higher level? Can they get RJ Barrett to continue to play away from his tunnel vision mentality that seemed to disappear as summer league went along? Can they take Ntilikina's physical gifts and use him as a Swiss Army knife role player and glue guy? Can they turn Trier's scoring acumen and make it helpful to the team's effort to actually win games?
While some of that is on the development staff, just as much is on Fizdale and his staff to deploy and mix and match his players the right way. It is essential that they are put in position to succeed, not only as individuals, but as a team. The right aspects of the game need to be stressed by the coaching staff.
Wins and losses are important this year, but still not as important as player development. It would be better for the team to win fewer games if it means their young core takes significant steps forward. If they are in the playoff race in February or March, but it is because of the Marcus Morrises or Taj Gibsons of the world, the season will not have the lasting impact it needs to.
A step needs to be taken this year, not just in the wins and losses column, but in the player development column. If you want to emerge from the doldrums of the NBA, you not only have to draft well, you have to develop well. We still don't know if the Knicks can do that. We'll know soon.
You can follow John on Twitter (@Schmeelk) for everything about the Knicks, Giants and the world of sports. You can find John's Knicks podcast "The Bank Shot" on most podcast platforms. Find it on Apple Podcasts here.
