MEDIC wrote:The Knicks were trash when they drafted RJ. They finished outside of play-in range 2 of his first 3 years. He was the high draft pick in a good draft & was supposed to be the savior for NY.
You get a new high end draft pick, what are you supposed to do? Let him take shots. Let him take lots of shots that are outside his comfort zone. Allow him to develop as the potential #1 option.
Eventually they sign a guy who is 4 years older & hitting his stride in the NBA. RJ is no longer in the plans as the #1 option & isn't a great fit with Randle/ Brunson.
RJ gets a fresh start in a new system where he has a clear role. The number one guy is more of a facilitator than a scorer. The roster also fits him a lot better. He is touted as part of a young core that is building towards something.
I don't think it's rocket science really.
RJ is still young & will continue to work on his game. I think Darko is a good communicator & lets these guys know what he envisions for them.
I am not concerned about RJ moving forward. He has good teammates, a supportive coach & really good friends and family around him. Plus, he's a worker.
Raptors fans should just forget what happened in NY. It's a clean slate. I looked at his college stats & his scoring, rebounding & assist numbers are crazy close to what they are now with the Raps.
Duke:
35.3 min
22.6 PPG
4.3 Assists
7.6 Reb
Raptors:
(Per 36)
22.7 PPG
4.4 Assists
6.7 Reb
He has definitely improved since his days at Duke, his shooting %'s are way up with the Raptors. He is also playing with another big forward like Zion who can rebound and play bully ball. Scottie is probably an even better fit for him because he has court vision & can pass. RJ also didn't have a PG like Quick to play with at Duke, which is another plus for his game. This team seems to be a perfect fit for him.
I've been a fan of smart, team-oriented b-ball for a long time, which is one of the things I like about Darko (even though this style didn't really fit with the initial team we had). RJ's shooting profile on Knicks vs Raps:
1) Cutting down on bad shots and reducing shooting volume
Catch and Shoot 3'sKnicks: 1.5/
4.4, 35.1%
Raps: 1.5/
3.6, 41.7%
Pull Up ShotsKnicks: 0.1/0.4, 20% on 3's (0.4/
1.7, 24.4% overall)
Raps: 0/0.1, 41.7% on 3's (0.2/
0.5, 43.8% overall)
2) Increasing usage in the paint
Paint touchesKnicks:
44.2 touches, 0.6/0.9 66.7%
Raps:
58.6 touches, 1.4/2.1 70%
DrivesKnicks: 10.2 drives per game, 2.1/5.4, 38.6%
Raptors: 12.3 drives per game, 2.8/5.2, 54.3%
3) Passing on drives, thus reducing bad shots and improving efficiency
DrivesKnicks: 2.7 passes per 10.2 drives (
26.7%), 0.6 assists (5.6%)
Raps: 4.7 passes per 12.3 drives (
38.2%), 1.1 assists (9%)