In an effort to save the season, the New York Knicks have been looking for roster help to finish out the season. The team tried Jimmer Fredette in the backcourt and that failed to work out. Fredette was sent to the D-League once his 10-day contract expired. Now, the Knicks will try Tony Wroten at the position.
The Philadelphia 76ers waived Wroten back on Dec. 24 and he has remained on the market ever since. Wroten is in his fourth season in the NBA after getting selected with the No. 25 pick in the 2012 NBA Draft. He averaged 11.1 points and three assists in 145 career games. The Knicks have opted to sign the guard in hopes that he can help the struggling backcourt for the rest of the year.
It is unclear just how long the Knicks have signed Wroten for. The contract is long-term, with reports saying he was offered a three-year deal. That means Phil Jackson believes in the long-term potential of Wroten. The guard is being signed in order to help Arron Afflalo and Jose Calderon, who have been struggling with consistency all season. The question is who Wroten bumps out at the end of the season with Calderon, Langston Galloway and Jerian Grant all battling him for time on the court in the guard position.
The 22-year-old could be viewed as an upgrade over Calderon, who has been taking the brunt of the criticism from the New York fan base. The Knicks have never been fully committed to the idea of Calderon as consistency has been an issue for the point guard. Interim head coach Kurt Rambis has toyed with the idea of moving Calderon to the bench in favor of someone like Galloway. The presence of Wroten could make that happen.
"Always when you're losing, you are considering a lot of things. We'll see," Rambis said. "We'll have some conversations with the coaching staff, management and players. We've got to find a way to play at a much higher level, and more intense level, and for longer periods of time."
There is no chance Wroten comes in and wins the starting job right away. He has played in just eight games this season after healing from a torn ACL. There is going to be a lot of rust from the guard as the Knicks appear to view him more as a development project over potential impact player. He was averaging 17 points per game prior to getting hurt, which shows that there is potential to work with. He is certainly someone the Knicks can store for next season.
