Well, that didn't last long.
We aren't even halfway into the NBA season and we already know that the New York Knicks are an absolute mess. I don't even think SONY would trade places with them at this point. Players are resisting the triangle offense and playing listlessly on defense. As a result, the Knicks currently own the second-worst winning percentage in the NBA. Just like Phil Jackson drew it up.
Since this year has morphed into an experiment on how much pain the average Knicks fan can tolerate, let's look ahead to (hopefully) greener pastures. The Knicks need help and they are going to get it one way or the other in free agency this offseason. So which pending free agents should the Knicks be targeting?
1. Marc Gasol, Center
Listing the best overall 2015 free agent as the first priority for the Knicks isn't exactly going out on a limb. It's probably more like staying on the ground and avoiding heights altogether. But Gasol has a unique combination that other pending free agents do not.
"As fate would have it, the No. 1 free agent in 2015 also happens to be the perfect match for the Knicks' needs," ESPN's Amin Elhassan wrote. "[Memphis] Grizzlies center Marc Gasol checks all the boxes as an elite-basketball IQ big who operates equally well out of both the high and low posts, is an excellent passing big who can score with his back to the basket, can shoot from midrange, and perhaps most importantly, he anchors an elite defense. The Knicks' pitch likely would revolve around the success of Gasol's older brother, Pau, with current team president Phil Jackson back in their Lakers days, as well as the benefit of not have to claw and scratch in the Western Conference."
Jackson isn't going anywhere, which means the triangle isn't going anywhere. So the team might as well spend big money on guys who can fit within that system. New York is incredibly lucky that the top option this offseason will be such a guy.
2. Goran Dragic, Point Guard
Dragic got the blog-o-sphere a burnin' last week when he mentioned the Knicks as a potential landing spot this summer, when he can opt out of his current deal. Jose Calderon has played well at the point guard position for the Knicks this season, but at 33 he's no one's idea of a long-term solution. Nabbing Dragic as he continues to raise his game would be a coup for the talent-starved Knicks.
"Like Gasol, Dragic fits the bill as the type of player Jackson has traditionally preferred: a big guard who can play either backcourt position, create off the dribble, shoot from the perimeter and defend. An All-NBA performer last season, Dragic is a lead-b-example players who plays with great energy and a motor that allows him to toe the line between blue-collar workhorse and skilled athlete."
It just seems like an easy move to make. The Phoenix Suns are log-jammed with point guards (Dragic, Eric Bledsoe, Isaiah Thomas, Tyler Ennis). They already have $14.4 million allocated to the position for next season, and the 28-year-old Dragic is probably looking for a raise on his $7.5 million salary this year. I expect him to hit the open market, and the Knicks should pounce when he does.
3. Paul Millsap, Forward
Paul Millsap is quietly playing the best basketball of his career down in Atlanta. Since joining the Hawks before the 2013 season, Millsap is averaging a career high in points per game (17) and assists (3.1) to go along with 8.2 rebounds and a respectable 36 percent from three-point range. He's evolved into a capable inside-outside offensive threat who plays hard on a winning team (don't look now, but the Hawks are somehow 20-7).
"He possesses the ability to operate inside and score efficiently around the basket while also playing on the perimeter and stretching the defense with his 3-point shooting. Like Gasol, Millsap is an adept passer from the elbows, and has run a high-basketball IQ system offense in both Utah and Atlanta...His versatility could allow the Knicks to play more positionless basketball with and Carmelo Anthony switching on both defense and offense."
Millsap wouldn't move the needle as much as the other guys on this list, but maybe that's what New York needs. A calming and consistent low-key player may be just the right remedy for the constantly chaotic Knicks.
