Merit wrote:MiamiSPX wrote:ForeverTFC wrote:
It's pretty much impossible to win in the NBA when your best player is a small guard not named Steph Curry. Knicks need to swap Randle for a first option wing/big before they even become fake contenders.
I said the same a few weeks ago. It's an extremely short list of teams that have won whose best player is an undersized guard. And the ones that did were generational talents, no doubt about it Hall of Famers. One of the refs in Game 1 was bigger than Brunson. Not bashing him at all, the guy is a bulldog and full credit to him for what he has become. But unfortunately, that unchangeable limitation is a thing.
They have the role player pieces who play huge and have the clutch gene. Josh Hart, OG, Donte. They’re hardcore. The pistons comparison is apt. They’re arguably better with Randle missing since they don’t have a poor defender who can be attacked, Brunson’s size differential aside. Thibs knows what he’s doing and he finally has decent personnel. OG is huge for them.
The Pistons comparison is what fans invoke to try and convince themselves their team can win without a top 10 player. We did the same many years ago when we had DD/Kyle leading us. They are the exception to the rule and of course it will eventually happen again but it won't be a team whose best player is a tiny guard. Not only did the rest of the last 30 title winners have a top 10 player at that time, almost all of them had a player (or 2-3) that are arguably among the top 100 players of all time.
We should also note that those Pistons did have 2 guys who ended up in the Hall of Fame (and I will insist Rasheed was better than both of them and would have been a HoFer if not for being a hothead, and pothead). These Knicks do not have anyone that will be in the Hall of Fame.
Having said all that, I don't dispute the rest of your post. Hart and Donte are absolute dogs, and I don't mind their swagger because they get after it at both ends. OG is OG, the only reason I think his contract will be brutal is because of how injury prone he is. And I also agree that they are better off without Randle. We've seen how embarrassingly bad he can be in the playoffs and right now he would be trying to do too much while Brunson is struggling.