The New York Knicks have a backup center problem, with a significant lack of depth behind departing Mitchell Robinson. With the preseason about two weeks away, the team is looking to solve the problem internally rather than make a late-offseason trade.
Jericho Sims could be a candidate to take over the backup center spot. In 138 career games, Sims is averaging 2.6 points and four rebounds per game and has made 32 starts in his three-year career so far.
However, the Knicks shouldn’t rely on an inexperienced project center to fill a spot that has a huge void. Sims has done a serviceable job when tasked with filling in for injured players like he did with Robinson the past two seasons, and while he’s a mobile defender who can guard multiple positions, he still struggles with some intangibles that make him difficult to play for extended periods.
His lack of offensive creativity is another flaw in his game. While Robinson is mostly just a lob threat in terms of scoring, he excels at grabbing offensive rebounds and making rebounding plays, which makes him super important to the team’s offense as a whole, giving them plenty of second-chance opportunities. Sims, on the other hand, isn’t as impressive in rebounding on either end of the floor and isn’t willing to get involved in the offense (1.6 field goal attempts per game for his career).