Breaking: Obi toppin traded to indiana

[FlashFlood]

The Knicks needed a role player at the PF position that could defend, shoot and rebound. Obi wasn't great at defense, had a streaky shot, and his rebounding was pretty bad for a power forward. Given playing time, he could probably put up great stats. He's got a terrific motor, athleticism, and can get hot from deep.

No defense or rebounding from the power forward spot unfortunately means that he's more of a tank commander, putting up empty stats for a losing team.

I'm not too bummed though Knicks fans. A backup PF seems easy to get in today's NBA. Remember the season when the Knicks had Julius Randle, a Morris twin, champion Bobby Portis and Taj Gibson? The Knicks will find someone that suits the role that Obi shouldn't have been slotted into.

[blueNorange]

not reading 22 pages, i hope obi the best and he’s in a great position to flourish.

[robillionaire]

Like how Thibs punishes Randle for poor defense?

When Obi becomes an all-star and averages 25 10 and 5 and drags a team to the playoffs twice as the only all star on the team he may get to lapse on defense too. Brunson sucks on defense should he be punished? Should they bench him for McBride or IQ every time someone blows by him? Great players have longer leashes this is how the game works guys

I've never seen Randle "drag a team to the playoffs twice".

But I've sure seen Randle drag a team down in the playoffs twice.

Well since sadly you missed the 2021 and 2023 seasons let me take the opportunity to remind you that he was the only all-star and also all-nba player on two different playoff teams.

Carmelo Anthony only did that once for the Knicks and that was 2012

Patrick Ewing was the last to do it multiple times and that was 30 years ago

So yeah this is why he gets to make mistakes

[K_ick_God]

When Obi becomes an all-star and averages 25 10 and 5 and drags a team to the playoffs twice as the only all star on the team he may get to lapse on defense too. Brunson sucks on defense should he be punished? Should they bench him for McBride or IQ every time someone blows by him? Great players have longer leashes this is how the game works guys

I've never seen Randle "drag a team to the playoffs twice".

But I've sure seen Randle drag a team down in the playoffs twice.

Well since sadly you missed the 2021 and 2023 seasons let me take the opportunity to remind you that he was the only all-star and also all-nba player on two different playoff teams.

Carmelo Anthony only did that once for the Knicks and that was 2012

Patrick Ewing was the last to do it multiple times and that was 30 years ago

So yeah this is why he gets to make mistakes

I'm not going to dispute that too much. Randle had two good regular seasons, yeah. Very good. But Thibs does win games, always has, and Brunson pretty clearly the best player last year. Randle was close but the second guy.

Nothing wrong with liking Randle but I think the idea that he's going to win big in NY is pretty far fetched. Again, he's not really good enough to be a great second guy, and he's not a good third guy either IMO because a) he's not some great scorer or shooter off others initiating and b) the other stuff he does besides scoring and shooting are subpar really.

b) - he is really not a good rebounder for example. Stats can be highly misleading. He gives up a lot of boards or ball watches.

But yeah he's got good numbers and did play major roles in getting a team to the playoffs. Doesn't make him a keeper though, that's the point. On the other hand, his contract I guess is def good value. I don't see him as much worse if at all than Sabonis.

[K_ick_God]

I don't get the detractors of Obi but the people who like Mitch. Not similar players but I think you've had too much Kool Aid.

What we saw of Mitch in the playoffs against the Heat is who he is ... I wish I was wrong and still hope to be.

But Mitch is a big klutzy guy with a weird attitude. And Thibs loves him. Mitch is a tough guy on the boards and if he has time to jump at you. But his offense is really terrible and he's not that great as a defender. His chasing and help D are like only okay. The days of him blocking 3's are gone. He's like Shawn Kemp after the lockout a little (not the games but the effect).

I mean, right now, if I could swap Mitch for Obi, I'd do it in a heartbeat. Get rid of that contract and Obi has higher upside all around. Obi's defense is not necessarily bad. I actually think it could be good.

And I hear the boos. Y'all love Mitch. I used to but I think he sucks really. Backup at best. What he did against Miami will not change. He's not some dominant defender and his offense has gone from bad to worse.

[KnicksGadfly]

When Obi becomes an all-star and averages 25 10 and 5 and drags a team to the playoffs twice as the only all star on the team he may get to lapse on defense too. Brunson sucks on defense should he be punished? Should they bench him for McBride or IQ every time someone blows by him? Great players have longer leashes this is how the game works guys

I've never seen Randle "drag a team to the playoffs twice".

But I've sure seen Randle drag a team down in the playoffs twice.

Well since sadly you missed the 2021 and 2023 seasons let me take the opportunity to remind you that he was the only all-star and also all-nba player on two different playoff teams.

Carmelo Anthony only did that once for the Knicks and that was 2012

Patrick Ewing was the last to do it multiple times and that was 30 years ago

So yeah this is why he gets to make mistakes

2021 absolutely counts but pointing to 2023 just seems to be bad faith arguing.

[ohboy109]

Good riddance. Nice kid tho

It's gonna be good riddance once low iq choke artist is gone

[Iron Mantis]

Good riddance. Nice kid tho

It's gonna be good riddance once low iq choke artist is gone

You're officially my favorite poster.

[Kampuchea]

I don't get the detractors of Obi but the people who like Mitch. Not similar players but I think you've had too much Kool Aid.

What we saw of Mitch in the playoffs against the Heat is who he is ... I wish I was wrong and still hope to be.

But Mitch is a big klutzy guy with a weird attitude. And Thibs loves him. Mitch is a tough guy on the boards and if he has time to jump at you. But his offense is really terrible and he's not that great as a defender. His chasing and help D are like only okay. The days of him blocking 3's are gone. He's like Shawn Kemp after the lockout a little (not the games but the effect).

I mean, right now, if I could swap Mitch for Obi, I'd do it in a heartbeat. Get rid of that contract and Obi has higher upside all around. Obi's defense is not necessarily bad. I actually think it could be good.

And I hear the boos. Y'all love Mitch. I used to but I think he sucks really. Backup at best. What he did against Miami will not change. He's not some dominant defender and his offense has gone from bad to worse.

Damn, that’s rough. I think Obi is nowhere near as good as Mitch. Not even close.

Bam is better, but don’t forget Mitch was dominant all season and against Cleveland. As in the best offensive rebounder in the league.

[KnicksGadfly]

I don't get the detractors of Obi but the people who like Mitch. Not similar players but I think you've had too much Kool Aid.

What we saw of Mitch in the playoffs against the Heat is who he is ... I wish I was wrong and still hope to be.

But Mitch is a big klutzy guy with a weird attitude. And Thibs loves him. Mitch is a tough guy on the boards and if he has time to jump at you. But his offense is really terrible and he's not that great as a defender. His chasing and help D are like only okay. The days of him blocking 3's are gone. He's like Shawn Kemp after the lockout a little (not the games but the effect).

I mean, right now, if I could swap Mitch for Obi, I'd do it in a heartbeat. Get rid of that contract and Obi has higher upside all around. Obi's defense is not necessarily bad. I actually think it could be good.

And I hear the boos. Y'all love Mitch. I used to but I think he sucks really. Backup at best. What he did against Miami will not change. He's not some dominant defender and his offense has gone from bad to worse.

Mitch’s contract is great and declining. He’s basically getting paid DDV money. He’s getting paid that little because he’s not expected to be a star. He’s a role player, who can sometimes beat up on frontlines like Cleveland. The contract is cheap enough that we should be able to swap him in and out based on matchups.

It’s incumbent on the stars to step up when it’s playoff time - we were supposed to have an absolute mismatch at power forward that should have pushed the series our way. Those power forwards probably should have stepped up more during the Cleveland series too, and didn’t.

[Guano]

Good riddance. Nice kid tho

It's gonna be good riddance once low iq choke artist is gone

You're officially my favorite poster.

Walmart jimmit doesn't even give us gifs or horrible photoshop.

[RHODEY]

This was an asset management failure, but mostly it was a player development failure. Thibs crapped the bed with Obi. There's no good reason Obi couldn't have gotten 20+ minutes a game since he produced when played.

Looks like I'll be watching some Indy games this year. I really want to see Obi shine.

Hopefully Obi's success will be linked with Thib's removal.

If Obi balls out it will be an awful look for Thibs and egg on Rose's face for sure

Yeah I hope. Really if anyone can unlock OBi, it's Hali.

[rajajackal]

i was willing to include obi in trades for stars or young difference makers. i am okay with choosing randle over him. what i'm not okay with is acting like he is a bad player when he did so much with so little in his three years here lol we could have come out with more. he impacted winning so many times. randle's better, yes. but let's get real. if we used randle to get a player at another position and could have had obi filling the power forward role, we'd be better off than we are with randle and two 2nd round picks

[RHODEY]

This was an asset management failure, but mostly it was a player development failure. Thibs crapped the bed with Obi. There's no good reason Obi couldn't have gotten 20+ minutes a game since he produced when played.

Looks like I'll be watching some Indy games this year. I really want to see Obi shine.

Hopefully Obi's success will be linked with Thib's removal.

What level of success could Obi have to invalidate Thibs's decision to play a solid 25-10 All-Star/All-NBA player over him? All-NBA first team? A better RAPTOR than Randle as a starter? 27-12? What are the criteria

I don t think it was a necessarily matter of playing Obi over Randle , just a matter giving him more minutes in general, not pulling him in the middle of a run , not maximizing his trade value, killing the kids confidence etc. A more creative and flexible coach would have figured at least some of those things out.

And Randle is a better player, but from a team concept its debatable. Can we be a true contender with his mental lapses and dumb play during critical moments.? How did the TEAM look with Obi on the floor as opposed to Randle? How did the ball move?

Thib and Randle are similar in the sense that they both are "good" but can either rise above "good"? Or are we capped with them?

[Iron Mantis]

It's gonna be good riddance once low iq choke artist is gone

You're officially my favorite poster.

Walmart jimmit doesn't even give us gifs or horrible photoshop.

True. They do have similar posting styles.

Ohboy109 moves different tho. Real shifty so the charges won't stick. Busts his gun and lays low for a while.

Jimmit was sloppy. Fell in love with the attention of groupies. Always bragged about his crimes. The state used the lyrics from his own mixed tapes to indict and convict him.

[Chanel Bomber]

Hopefully Obi's success will be linked with Thib's removal.

What level of success could Obi have to invalidate Thibs's decision to play a solid 25-10 All-Star/All-NBA player over him? All-NBA first team? A better RAPTOR than Randle as a starter? 27-12? What are the criteria

I don t think it was a necessarily matter of playing Obi over Randle , just a matter giving him more minutes in general, not pulling him in the middle of a run , not maximizing his trade value, killing the kids confidence etc. A more creative and flexible coach would have figured at least some of those things out.

And Randle is a better player, but from a team concept its debatable. Can we be a true contender with his mental lapses and dumb play during critical moments.? How did the TEAM look with Obi on the floor as opposed to Randle? How did the ball move?

Thib and Randle are similar in the sense that they both are "good" but can either rise above "good"? Or are we capped with them?

That's a fair question but one for the front office to figure out.

Thibs isn't employed to make that call - his duty is to pick his best teams from the sidelines and Randle is simply a much better player than Obi.

Thibs was given two power forwards with no positional versatility. Obi and Randle can't play the 3 or the 5. So they were stuck in a zero-sum game with their minutes at the 4. It just is what it is. Thibs just opted to put more trust in the better player.

Listen it was a bad draft pick and that's how it started. Unfortunate situation for Obi? Yes, absolutely. But coach Thibs managed to overperform expectations and take us to the postseason twice in 3 years by putting his trust in Randle (among other things) so it's fair to say this decision paid off.

How did the team look with Obi? Good, because he was part of great bench units that dominated against inferior second units. That's not necessarily replicable against opposing starters. It's different levels of competition.

[KnicksGadfly]

I’m not sure it’s so much of a guarantee that Obi would have done well if he played more here. There’s actually a chance that he plays well in Indiana, but that team has Tyrese and Myles Turner. Those 2 guys will maximize anyone in this league.

We needed Obi to do something really different. We needed him to fill in the gaps, not for us to fill in the gaps around him. That’s why Thibs was so adamant about defense, rebounding and 3s. If Obi had those skills, he’d be making so much bank right now.

[Adelheid]

What level of success could Obi have to invalidate Thibs's decision to play a solid 25-10 All-Star/All-NBA player over him? All-NBA first team? A better RAPTOR than Randle as a starter? 27-12? What are the criteria

I don t think it was a necessarily matter of playing Obi over Randle , just a matter giving him more minutes in general, not pulling him in the middle of a run , not maximizing his trade value, killing the kids confidence etc. A more creative and flexible coach would have figured at least some of those things out.

And Randle is a better player, but from a team concept its debatable. Can we be a true contender with his mental lapses and dumb play during critical moments.? How did the TEAM look with Obi on the floor as opposed to Randle? How did the ball move?

Thib and Randle are similar in the sense that they both are "good" but can either rise above "good"? Or are we capped with them?

That's a fair question but one for the front office to figure out.

Thibs isn't employed to make that call - his duty is to pick his best teams from the sidelines and Randle is simply a much better player than Obi.

Thibs was given two power forwards with no positional versatility. Obi and Randle can't play the 3 or the 5. So they were stuck in a zero-sum game with their minutes at the 4. It just is what it is. Thibs just opted to put more trust in the better player.

Listen it was a bad draft pick and that's how it started. Unfortunate situation for Obi? Yes, absolutely. But coach Thibs managed to overperform expectations and take us to the postseason twice in 3 years by putting his trust in Randle (among other things) so it's fair to say this decision paid off.

How did the team look with Obi? Good, because he was part of great bench units that dominated against inferior second units. That's not necessarily replicable against opposing starters. It's different levels of competition.

same sentiments here. It is and was an idiot choice by perry and co.

[drekwins]

This was an asset management failure, but mostly it was a player development failure. Thibs crapped the bed with Obi. There's no good reason Obi couldn't have gotten 20+ minutes a game since he produced when played.

Looks like I'll be watching some Indy games this year. I really want to see Obi shine.

Hopefully Obi's success will be linked with Thib's removal.

What level of success could Obi have to invalidate Thibs's decision to play a solid 25-10 All-Star/All-NBA player over him? All-NBA first team? A better RAPTOR than Randle as a starter? 27-12? What are the criteria

They should have played Obi enough to showcase his value. Yet, they did the worst possible thing. They overplayed Randle so that everyone sees his flaws and knows his numbers are significantly inflated. Yet, now he feels entitled and as if he deserves star treatment (no one else in the NBA does)... and, at the same time, they managed to underplay Obi enough so that everyone outside of NY is sleeping on his value.

Thibs accomplished the worst case scenario.. where neither has value.

[RHODEY]

What level of success could Obi have to invalidate Thibs's decision to play a solid 25-10 All-Star/All-NBA player over him? All-NBA first team? A better RAPTOR than Randle as a starter? 27-12? What are the criteria

I don t think it was a necessarily matter of playing Obi over Randle , just a matter giving him more minutes in general, not pulling him in the middle of a run , not maximizing his trade value, killing the kids confidence etc. A more creative and flexible coach would have figured at least some of those things out.

And Randle is a better player, but from a team concept its debatable. Can we be a true contender with his mental lapses and dumb play during critical moments.? How did the TEAM look with Obi on the floor as opposed to Randle? How did the ball move?

Thib and Randle are similar in the sense that they both are "good" but can either rise above "good"? Or are we capped with them?

That's a fair question but one for the front office to figure out.

Thibs isn't employed to make that call - his duty is to pick his best teams from the sidelines and Randle is simply a much better player than Obi.

Thibs was given two power forwards with no positional versatility. Obi and Randle can't play the 3 or the 5. So they were stuck in a zero-sum game with their minutes at the 4. It just is what it is. Thibs just opted to put more trust in the better player.

Listen it was a bad draft pick and that's how it started. Unfortunate situation for Obi? Yes, absolutely. But coach Thibs managed to overperform expectations and take us to the postseason twice in 3 years by putting his trust in Randle (among other things) so it's fair to say this decision paid off.

How did the team look with Obi? Good, because he was part of great bench units that dominated against inferior second units. That's not necessarily replicable against opposing starters. It's different levels of competition.

You're not wrong except that I dont agree it was quite a zero sum equation.

There were several opportunities for thibs to put OBi in...even during blow out wins were he insisted on coddling Randle's ego till the final buzzer rang instead of giving Obi some burn.


There were several in game runs that Obi spearheaded versus the opposing teams starting units..andt Thibs pulled the plug...

It was to the point were it began to look personal to me. And if Thibs felt the need to ride Randle he still didn't have to enable his bad habits by giving him a different set of standards compared to the rest of the team. That's how you lose a team and those are things that had nothing to do with the front office.