New York Knicks
The 2020-21 New York Knicks season can be defined by the fact that the Knicks blew all of their preseason expectations and preconceived notions right out of the water, finishing as the #4 seed in the Eastern Conference.
What did we learn?
We were a year too early on feeling crazy and picking the Knicks to overachieve. But in our season preview, we did say: The question must be asked, is there some young surprise team potential looming within?
It was Tom Thibodeau who was able to unlock the very best version of Julius Randle and this entire Knicks roster. The Knicks, by gawd, THE KNICKS, were a spunky bunch that played with more organization and togetherness than we ever could have imagined. A collective, consummate team effort goes such a long way in the NBA. Thibs was the Coach of the Year, a hands down choice in our book.
It all started with defense. The key to the Knicks success was shutting down the opposition and then bullying and bludgeoning them to death throughout the course of 90’s-looking slugfests. The Knicks had the 4th-most efficient defense in the league, and they were dead last in pace.
Randle’s prominent iso-game was hard to believe, until it wasn’t. If Randle was previously a bull in a china shop, then he transformed into a lion with a three-point shot. He proved all season long that he was the no-doubt Most Improved Player in the league and his newfound 3 was not only legit but downright lethal, the go-to #1 option for an offense. Randle was a beast, averaging 24 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists per game to go along with 41 percent from 3 after shooting just 27.7 percent from 3 in his first season as a Knickerbocker.
There was a stretch of two weeks in April where Randle was somehow even more phenomenal than he already was, averaging 28 points per game, 8 rebounds, 5 assists and 55% from 3 on 7.3 attempts per game. This coincided with Randle leading the Knicks to the highest Net Rating in the NBA in the month of April, the hottest team in the league with a 9-game winning streak and a 12-1 record in 13 games. And Randle getting ejected in the first game after he was named to the All-Star team, which also happened to be the first game that fans were allowed back at MSG, was just so Knicks.
RJ Barrett started making more and more timely buckets as the Knicks #2 option. And even though it seemed hard to trust him shooting the 3, Barrett finished the season at 40 percent! Who else shot over 40 percent from 3? Reggie Bullock, Alec Burks and Derek Rose. For a team that wasn’t supposed to have shooting and spacing, the Knicks finished third in the NBA in three-point percentage.
The D-Rose trade was a big turning point in the season. Reunited with Thibs once again, Rose provided stability and steadiness, adding a spark and controlling the tempo of the game. We were not fans of the trade initially, wanting all of those minutes to go to Immanuel Quickley, a deep-range threat and fast rookie with supreme offensive talent. But D-Rose’s savviness as the catalyst for the Knicks off the bench made that trade an undisputed success.
The Mitchell Robinson fractured foot injury sucked, but Nerlens Noel finished 3rd in the league in blocks per game, imperative as the last line of defense at the rim. Nerlens posted an offensive rating of 120 and a defensive rating of 101, pretty damn good. Taj Gibson was another big contributor to the team’s success despite not putting up big individual numbers. Gibson was even ahead of Noel with an unreal offensive rating of 139 and defensive rating of 105. Advanced individual numbers can be tricky, but those are bananas.
We didn’t get to see a whole heckuva lot from the #8 overall pick Obi Toppin at just 11 minutes per game, but the little we did see showed he’s the above the rim player that he’s made out to be.
In the end, it didn’t work out for the Knicks in Round 1 vs. Atlanta. Randle simply never got going. The next step is finding additional reliable offensive creation for when defenses key all the way into Randle or if he’s having an off night.
But damn oh damn was it nice to hear The Garden rocking once again.
There is no other playoff (or basketball in general) atmosphere quite like MSG.
It was so great that we even forgot to scream: SELL THE TEAM!
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Did our preseason Over/Under prediction hit?
Under 22.5 wins, but this Knicks team should be a helluva lot more fun to watch.
Knicks 2020-21 Record: (41-31)
Nope, our preseason Over/Under prediction did not hit, but the Knicks were indeed a helluva lot more fun to watch.
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What’s Next?
Julius Randle’s extension has got to be priority 1 right now.
The Knicks hold the #19 and #21 picks in the draft. James Bouknight is the trendy pick everyone seems to hope lands in NYC, but it also seems like he’s gaining popularity and could be moving up plenty of other big boards.
Leon Rose — who deserves an immense amount of credit, by the way — has an avenue to an abundance of cap space given how many players on this team are pending free agents. The Knicks could have up to $50 million in cap space if they wanted to! They will very likely bring some of their own guys back:
Derrick Rose, Mitchell Robinson, Alec Burks, Reggie Bullock, Nerlens Noel, Taj Gibson, Elfrid Payton, Frank Ntilikina and Theo Pinson could all be free agents. Mitch Rob, Frankie Smokes and Theo Pinson are the restricted ones. Regardless of anything else, you gotta bring back Theo Pinson, the bench mob leader extraordinaire.
If the Knicks do pull off landing a star, we hope it’s Dame. Can you imagine Dame lighting up MSG on the reg? And the Knicks would be able to surround him with defense!
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Favorite Knicks Highlight from the 2020-21 Season:
The Mecca was BACK.
