The Knicks had 24 games under .500 when the NBA suspended the 2019-20 season. When your record is so negative, your team usually has several significant holes to fill.
The obvious one for New York this season was out of filming. That’s why some in the organization see a guide guard who can take down a shot as a low season priority.
But this isn’t the only area that could use an update.
Before Leon Rose took control, other areas of need identified by the New York front office / scout included a striker who could stretch the floor.
A person in contact with members of the organization at the time said that part of the club’s off-season thinking was focused on finding players who complete the RJ Barrett rookie.
“If you want to integrate Barrett, that’s where I would go,” said an opposite front office member. “By adding (a guard and a big man who can shoot from the perimeter), you make room for the floor and make things easier for him. The floor was so crowded for them this year.”
It is easy to find statistics that support the points of this front office member.
The 2019-20 Knicks were 27th as a percentage of goals on the pitch at two and three points. They had the fourth lowest total assists per 100 possessions, the worst percentage of true throws and ranked 24th in percentage of free throws made by goal on the pitch.
The need to shoot and a big man who is a threat from the perimeter were identified before Rose took over as team president. Since then Rose has hired two assistant general managers and a vice president of basketball and strategic planning, who are working diligently and obviously involved in future planning, so the list of priorities may have changed.
But it is logical to think that those positions will be at least areas of interest for New York in the offseason. The New York Post reported that Rose told the Knicks in March that finding a scorer was the top priority in the draft and a shooting guard was the second priority. An SNY source said that finding an attacker who can take down a shot – in the draft or in a free agency – is an item on the Knicks list.
New York has two first-round picks and one second-round pick in the NBA 2020 Draft. Depending on where the pay limit ends and what the Knicks do with players who have options on their contracts, this summer the club may have about $ 60 million in space.