Things I learned from Summer League Interviews

[AmazingJason]

This is one of the worst thread titles of all time It's already starting to drop because nobody wants to read about the worst Summer League team in history. The title really should be renamed. It has so much good info in it.

[Im Coming Home]

This is one of the worst thread titles of all time It's already starting to drop because nobody wants to read about the worst Summer League team in history. The title really should be renamed. It has so much good info in it.

Agreed, this title should be changed because the info is too good and a lot of people are gonna miss out on it.

[Smitty731]

This is one of the worst thread titles of all time It's already starting to drop because nobody wants to read about the worst Summer League team in history. The title really should be renamed. It has so much good info in it.

Agreed, this title should be changed because the info is too good and a lot of people are gonna miss out on it.

I changed it. is that better?

And thanks for the kind words!

[Im Coming Home]

This is one of the worst thread titles of all time It's already starting to drop because nobody wants to read about the worst Summer League team in history. The title really should be renamed. It has so much good info in it.

Agreed, this title should be changed because the info is too good and a lot of people are gonna miss out on it.

I changed it. is that better?

And thanks for the kind words!

Hmm, I'd go for more along the lines up 'My very interesting interview with the Knicks at Summer League' or something like that. But this title might work.

[Phish Tank]

Thanks a lot for the info Smitty.

From what it looks like, don't expect Porzingis to go anywhere anytime soon

[CJackson]

Hey all!

Not sure how much you follow along the other boards, but I've been at Orlando Summer League all week. I had the chance to talk to a lot of people with the Knicks over the week and today got about 5 minutes with Phil Jackson and Steve Mills. Previously I talked to Jeff Hornacek and Kristaps Porzingis as well. Here are some of the notes I got from various people associated with the team. Not all of them are from the previously referenced guys.

Not all of this may be super newsworthy or anything, but all felt good enough to share.

If you have specific questions, please quote me so I'll be sure to see it.

1. Porzingis is ridiculously big in person up close. And he's all arms and legs. People are not meant to be built like he is.

2. He really wanted to play for Latvia in the Olympic qualifier and the team shut it down pretty quickly. So, he asked to play Summer League and they shut that down even quicker. But the team loves his desire to play and work. They have to make him leave the gym.

3. They see him as 100% the star of the franchise, beyond even Carmelo Anthony. As soon as this year, they hope to start to transition the team to being Porzingis' team.

4. Expect to see Rose and Jennings play together some. Hornacek had really good success with that in Phoenix with Dragic and Bledsoe and likes the options it provides. He's really excited to draw up sets that feature multiple dribble drives and Porzinigis diving to the rim. Hornacek had great success with Miles Plumlee as a diver/roler and see Porzingis as about 100x better.

5. The usage of the triangle is still something Phil wants. As often said, the triangle to him is bigger than just a basketball thing. But the understanding was that Hornacek would not be forced to use the triangle. Elements of it, but not solely it. He has stuff he likes and you can already see the roster being constructed that way.

6. They feel like they will be very hard to score on inside with Noah and Porzingis. And they intend to play Thomas a lot to further extend the defense.

7. A big part of signing Noah was his passing and ball handling ability. They see his ability execute DHOs and screens as a huge key to getting Rose free and getting Anthony shots.

8. It was very hard for them to give up Robin Lopez. They loved everything he did for them and his fit with Porzingis. But, as the quote was, "you have to give something to get something and we feel like Rose was someone we had to get."

9. They weren't so sad to see Jerian Grant go. I won't name the person who said it but they said, "That was Phil's pick. Dude loves big PGs and reached. And we realized by the end of Summer League last year."

10. The team is really excited for Hernangomez and Kuzminskas. They feel like both are athletic and tough and will pair well up front with Porzingis.

11. Courtney Lee was the SG they wanted all along. They said the Eric Gordon rumors were "bullsh*t. We already took a shot on one injured guy and Melo isn't always healthy either. Why would we add a walking injury to the mix?"

12. The team was bummed to lose Galloway. They loved the kid, but had to make some tough choices with the cap.

13. And finally, don't be surprised to see Ron Baker get a camp invite and to make the team as an undrafted rookie. He's been pretty good in Orlando and repeatedly I was told "he just plays the right way all the time. All the time. It doesn't translate here (Summer League) because this is bullsh*t basketball. But this guy can play. He'll be in the league."

Bonus: They openly admit they may have the worst Summer League team ever and that most of their guys have no shot at the NBA.

So, again, not really anything earth shattering maybe, but some stuff I heard that I wanted to share.

Terrific. thanks for sharing.

I pretty much said the same thing about Baker in the other summer league thread before reading this here. I watched some of the Orlando game today and he was clearly the guy on the floor who had a clue and knows where to be on the floor. I expect him to make the club or at the very least be the first guy called up from Westchester. He's a keeper.

I think Baker will be better than Galloway and though I liked Gallo I don't think it is a big loss. Lance was more important to retain IMO.

I do believe what you're saying about Lee over Gordon, both in terms of fit and minimizing injury potential. Makes perfect sense.

and I'm not surprised about Grant. I thought he was going to stick but I don't feel bad about letting him go at all either.

And good to know the club is fully on board with KP as the franchise core and they are going to protect him like they are doing.

Thanks for the write-up

[magnumt]

Hey all!

Not sure how much you follow along the other boards, but I've been at Orlando Summer League all week. I had the chance to talk to a lot of people with the Knicks over the week and today got about 5 minutes with Phil Jackson and Steve Mills. Previously I talked to Jeff Hornacek and Kristaps Porzingis as well. Here are some of the notes I got from various people associated with the team. Not all of them are from the previously referenced guys.

Not all of this may be super newsworthy or anything, but all felt good enough to share.

If you have specific questions, please quote me so I'll be sure to see it.

1. Porzingis is ridiculously big in person up close. And he's all arms and legs. People are not meant to be built like he is.

2. He really wanted to play for Latvia in the Olympic qualifier and the team shut it down pretty quickly. So, he asked to play Summer League and they shut that down even quicker. But the team loves his desire to play and work. They have to make him leave the gym.

3. They see him as 100% the star of the franchise, beyond even Carmelo Anthony. As soon as this year, they hope to start to transition the team to being Porzingis' team.

4. Expect to see Rose and Jennings play together some. Hornacek had really good success with that in Phoenix with Dragic and Bledsoe and likes the options it provides. He's really excited to draw up sets that feature multiple dribble drives and Porzinigis diving to the rim. Hornacek had great success with Miles Plumlee as a diver/roler and see Porzingis as about 100x better.

5. The usage of the triangle is still something Phil wants. As often said, the triangle to him is bigger than just a basketball thing. But the understanding was that Hornacek would not be forced to use the triangle. Elements of it, but not solely it. He has stuff he likes and you can already see the roster being constructed that way.

6. They feel like they will be very hard to score on inside with Noah and Porzingis. And they intend to play Thomas a lot to further extend the defense.

7. A big part of signing Noah was his passing and ball handling ability. They see his ability execute DHOs and screens as a huge key to getting Rose free and getting Anthony shots.

8. It was very hard for them to give up Robin Lopez. They loved everything he did for them and his fit with Porzingis. But, as the quote was, "you have to give something to get something and we feel like Rose was someone we had to get."

9. They weren't so sad to see Jerian Grant go. I won't name the person who said it but they said, "That was Phil's pick. Dude loves big PGs and reached. And we realized by the end of Summer League last year."

10. The team is really excited for Hernangomez and Kuzminskas. They feel like both are athletic and tough and will pair well up front with Porzingis.

11. Courtney Lee was the SG they wanted all along. They said the Eric Gordon rumors were "bullsh*t. We already took a shot on one injured guy and Melo isn't always healthy either. Why would we add a walking injury to the mix?"

12. The team was bummed to lose Galloway. They loved the kid, but had to make some tough choices with the cap.

13. And finally, don't be surprised to see Ron Baker get a camp invite and to make the team as an undrafted rookie. He's been pretty good in Orlando and repeatedly I was told "he just plays the right way all the time. All the time. It doesn't translate here (Summer League) because this is bullsh*t basketball. But this guy can play. He'll be in the league."

Bonus: They openly admit they may have the worst Summer League team ever and that most of their guys have no shot at the NBA.

So, again, not really anything earth shattering maybe, but some stuff I heard that I wanted to share.

Thanks again Smitty for posting the info! You're welcome here anytime bro!

Keep up the great Cap work you do here at RGM and on the GB.

--Mags

[Triple C]

The winner of this trade is

Spoiler:

[Adelheid]

Hey all!

Not sure how much you follow along the other boards, but I've been at Orlando Summer League all week. I had the chance to talk to a lot of people with the Knicks over the week and today got about 5 minutes with Phil Jackson and Steve Mills. Previously I talked to Jeff Hornacek and Kristaps Porzingis as well. Here are some of the notes I got from various people associated with the team. Not all of them are from the previously referenced guys.

Not all of this may be super newsworthy or anything, but all felt good enough to share.

If you have specific questions, please quote me so I'll be sure to see it.

1. Porzingis is ridiculously big in person up close. And he's all arms and legs. People are not meant to be built like he is.

2. He really wanted to play for Latvia in the Olympic qualifier and the team shut it down pretty quickly. So, he asked to play Summer League and they shut that down even quicker. But the team loves his desire to play and work. They have to make him leave the gym.

3. They see him as 100% the star of the franchise, beyond even Carmelo Anthony. As soon as this year, they hope to start to transition the team to being Porzingis' team.

4. Expect to see Rose and Jennings play together some. Hornacek had really good success with that in Phoenix with Dragic and Bledsoe and likes the options it provides. He's really excited to draw up sets that feature multiple dribble drives and Porzinigis diving to the rim. Hornacek had great success with Miles Plumlee as a diver/roler and see Porzingis as about 100x better.

5. The usage of the triangle is still something Phil wants. As often said, the triangle to him is bigger than just a basketball thing. But the understanding was that Hornacek would not be forced to use the triangle. Elements of it, but not solely it. He has stuff he likes and you can already see the roster being constructed that way.

6. They feel like they will be very hard to score on inside with Noah and Porzingis. And they intend to play Thomas a lot to further extend the defense.

7. A big part of signing Noah was his passing and ball handling ability. They see his ability execute DHOs and screens as a huge key to getting Rose free and getting Anthony shots.

8. It was very hard for them to give up Robin Lopez. They loved everything he did for them and his fit with Porzingis. But, as the quote was, "you have to give something to get something and we feel like Rose was someone we had to get."

9. They weren't so sad to see Jerian Grant go. I won't name the person who said it but they said, "That was Phil's pick. Dude loves big PGs and reached. And we realized by the end of Summer League last year."

10. The team is really excited for Hernangomez and Kuzminskas. They feel like both are athletic and tough and will pair well up front with Porzingis.

11. Courtney Lee was the SG they wanted all along. They said the Eric Gordon rumors were "bullsh*t. We already took a shot on one injured guy and Melo isn't always healthy either. Why would we add a walking injury to the mix?"

12. The team was bummed to lose Galloway. They loved the kid, but had to make some tough choices with the cap.

13. And finally, don't be surprised to see Ron Baker get a camp invite and to make the team as an undrafted rookie. He's been pretty good in Orlando and repeatedly I was told "he just plays the right way all the time. All the time. It doesn't translate here (Summer League) because this is bullsh*t basketball. But this guy can play. He'll be in the league."

Bonus: They openly admit they may have the worst Summer League team ever and that most of their guys have no shot at the NBA.

So, again, not really anything earth shattering maybe, but some stuff I heard that I wanted to share.

Before anything else, a virtual +1,000,000 and1s to you sir.

I wonder what did they see in Grant that made them uninterested. Any particular tidbits?

Comment about Baker is something to think about. Hope they are right about it.

[Smitty731]

Before anything else, a virtual +1,000,000 and1s to you sir.

I wonder what did they see in Grant that made them uninterested. Any particular tidbits?

Comment about Baker is something to think about. Hope they are right about it.

Nothing overly specific. They just didn't think he'd ever get there.

[NBA Fan 1234]

Smitty, between this and the amazing cap work you've got going on, you've been godsend to this forum.

[CJackson]

Before anything else, a virtual +1,000,000 and1s to you sir.

I wonder what did they see in Grant that made them uninterested. Any particular tidbits?

Comment about Baker is something to think about. Hope they are right about it.

Nothing overly specific. They just didn't think he'd ever get there.

Grant has a motor, but very little decision making ability. Baker has that. Grant is not talented enough to overcome his lower ball IQ

[Adelheid]

Before anything else, a virtual +1,000,000 and1s to you sir.

I wonder what did they see in Grant that made them uninterested. Any particular tidbits?

Comment about Baker is something to think about. Hope they are right about it.

Nothing overly specific. They just didn't think he'd ever get there.

Sounds like that he is not going to pan out (or will come around but much later). Must be issues "upstairs"

[Knicksfan1992]

I agree on the Baker part. Kid has a high IQ and you can see it in the timing of his cuts. He fully understood the spacing of the floor and just missed a lot of open looks. And his defense will translate. I think he'll be a great bench piece for us in the future.

[Deeeez Knicks]

Great info!

Also love the salary sheet

[BKlutch]

This is all very valuable information and seems to make sense, given how things have played out. I am surprised hearing about Grant, because the idea was always that he wasn't nurtured properly by the coach, but he could play better next year after his April. I guess they weren't as optimistic as we were. Now, when we look at it, ALL our trades make so much more sense. And it is the Heat who look like fools. I wish we could learn what they think about LA taking Calderon.

[magnumt]

Before anything else, a virtual +1,000,000 and1s to you sir.

I wonder what did they see in Grant that made them uninterested. Any particular tidbits?

Comment about Baker is something to think about. Hope they are right about it.

Nothing overly specific. They just didn't think he'd ever get there.

Grant has a motor, but very little decision making ability. Baker has that. Grant is not talented enough to overcome his lower ball IQ

He also lacks range right now.

Smitty, did you get any ideas about how they might finish off the bench/roster? Vet Min guys?

I also think they may at some point keep an eye on Randle.

--Mags

[AmazingJason]

This is all very valuable information and seems to make sense, given how things have played out. I am surprised hearing about Grant, because the idea was always that he wasn't nurtured properly by the coach, but he could play better next year after his April. I guess they weren't as optimistic as we were. Now, when we look at it, ALL our trades make so much more sense. And it is the Heat who look like fools. I wish we could learn what they think about LA taking Calderon.

Sounds like we traded one THJr for another

[BKlutch]

This is all very valuable information and seems to make sense, given how things have played out. I am surprised hearing about Grant, because the idea was always that he wasn't nurtured properly by the coach, but he could play better next year after his April. I guess they weren't as optimistic as we were. Now, when we look at it, ALL our trades make so much more sense. And it is the Heat who look like fools. I wish we could learn what they think about LA taking Calderon.

Sounds like we traded one THJr for another

They turned out to be more similar than we thought, but the difference is Atlanta got hoodwinked. We weren't hoodwinked by Atlanta, because we could have picked who we wanted. AND, we did turn THJr into Grant into Part of Noah and Holiday and Rose.

Ultimately, trading THJr worked out. But yes, they were more similar than we wanted to believe.

[Smitty731]

Nothing overly specific. They just didn't think he'd ever get there.

Grant has a motor, but very little decision making ability. Baker has that. Grant is not talented enough to overcome his lower ball IQ

He also lacks range right now.

Smitty, did you get any ideas about how they might finish off the bench/roster? Vet Min guys?

I also think they may at some point keep an eye on Randle.

--Mags

I asked that exact question and they said they want to see how the rest of the summer plays out.