PG: The hair foul game

[Guano]

It’s pretty cool seeing lavine back healthy. Really fun player to watch when he has it going. Whoever trades for him is getting a good player. Averaging 23 PPG on 54/42/73 splits. Hyper efficient.

that sequence where he stuffed og's fade then got an and1 on the other end was special. the talent is their just hard to trust his health at this point - especially at his price tag.

[robillionaire]

Bridges looks like a guy maybe you give 1 first for, not 5. Now shooting 30% from 3 and 63% from the line. I don’t feel so good

[HEZI]

I’m sure Leon Rose will make another move or two to help with some depth. Bench is not good and nobody that is available to play would help much. Sims really sucks, Ryan kinda sucks too. Achiuwa and Robinson are hurt. So no real backup wings or bigs at the moment.

At least they showed resiliency but still no excuse for some of that laziness and poor decision making in the 1st half. They know they can be better

my overall concern level is not that high

there were always going to be growing pains. We have had some blown leads in the 4th and then this loss with a bad "foul" and then brunson missing a shot that way 90% down.

I would rather be struggling early in the year. And our NET rating is still top 10 in the league. When we start clicking on all cylinders we will be a top 5 NET rating team.

Now the thing that can completely derail is if Thibs runs there guys into the ground (injury) before playoffs.

If Brunson was even slightly better our record would be much better than it is now. That’s not even taking into account how much better Bridges can be too and he’s got it in him but just goes through stretches where he looks awful then looks great. Needs to find consistency

I think with a healthy Robinson and Achiuwa the minute distribution will look different and bench play would be a lot better but unfortunately Thibs doesn’t have much to work with on that bench at the moment. Payne and Deuce provide a good spark and they play but that’s it that’s all we have right now

[BowlRips]

For the way we are using Mikal, I think I'd rather have traded a first to the Bulls for Caruso. We gave up 5 firsts for a 3 & D with no 3 and some D.

Even with the second unit, Mikal doesn't get any touches, doesn't demand the ball nor does he lock anyone down. Thibs needs to call plays for him or something cause Brunson will get right at some point but Mikal may never get going if we don't feature him a bit, especially early in the season and with JB struggling.

Knicks offered 2 firsts for Caruso. They wanted Giddey instead.
It’s very clear KAT was in their plans when they traded for Bridges.
But Bridges isn’t worth 5 firsts?!? Well - where we are with the apron today, not only did the Knicks value his potential 3 and D promise and the Nova Connection but his salary slot.
Aller and crew probably valued fitting this all in at under $189m as worth a pick or two. No doubt in my mind.
What other players in that salary slot could’ve been available for cheaper? Kuzma? Klay Thompson? those guys didn’t fit the vision.
I still hold out high hopes. There’s an adjustment period no question. How did DDV look after his first 10 games? I think he needs the benefit of the full rotation so he can get some on ball reps with the second unit and get him going.

[Chanel Bomber]

We severely lack depth and we miss another volume 3-point shooter after (essentially) swapping Divo for Mikal/Hart on the perimeter.

KAT and Brunson are both great offensive players, yet the offense looks heavy and static with Hart, Mikal and OG on the perimeter. Not enough ballhandling, screen navigation or 3-point shooting.

I think they need to look at their remaining assets and see what they can consolidate to acquire a more mobile, more accurate shooter at the 2.

Perhaps some combination of Pacome, Kolek, the Wizards pick, plus salary filler can get you something, though I doubt our rookies have much value.

[WaltFrazier]

Whenever I see Precious on the bench he looks eager to get back, cheering the team. Hope he's getting lots of shots up while his hamstring heals. Has there been any word of how much practice he's doing? Looking forward to his return

[3toheadmelo]

It’s pretty cool seeing lavine back healthy. Really fun player to watch when he has it going. Whoever trades for him is getting a good player. Averaging 23 PPG on 54/42/73 splits. Hyper efficient.

that sequence where he stuffed og's fade then got an and1 on the other end was special. the talent is their just hard to trust his health at this point - especially at his price tag.

Yeah him being injury prone and having a massive contract makes him hard to move

[3toheadmelo]

We severely lack depth and we miss another volume 3-point shooter after (essentially) swapping Divo for Mikal/Hart on the perimeter.

KAT and Brunson are both great offensive players, yet the offense looks heavy and static with Hart, Mikal and OG on the perimeter. Not enough ballhandling, screen navigation or 3-point shooting.

I think they need to look at their remaining assets and see what they can consolidate to acquire a more mobile, more accurate shooter at the 2.

Perhaps some combination of Pacome, Kolek, the Wizards pick, plus salary filler can get you something, though I doubt our rookies have much value.

Can we even do a lavine for mikal swap? Like does it work contract wise?

[GettinitDone]

It’s pretty cool seeing lavine back healthy. Really fun player to watch when he has it going. Whoever trades for him is getting a good player. Averaging 23 PPG on 54/42/73 splits. Hyper efficient.

He's a good piece to have, you're just going nowhere with him as a top option. And you have to account for his poor defense. But I think he would be great here as a Divo replacement. We miss a dynamic 3-point shooter/ballhandler on the perimeter without Divo. The contract is an albatross but purely as a basketball player he'd be a much better fit than Mikal.

Yeah he’s definitely not a #1 option. Would be great here as our #3 instead of Mikal for sure.

Tbh lots of players struggle when they move down from #1 option to #2 or #3... it's easy as #1 when you have the ball all the time, you build your rhythm and momentum every game... if Zach was here in Mikal's spot, he might struggle having to live off JB and KAT's scraps too... and you put Mikal on the Bulls as #1 option, he might become a franchise player avging 30ppg

Why do you love these volume inefficient ball stopper scorers anyway? Randle, LaVine, Ayton

[3toheadmelo]

He's a good piece to have, you're just going nowhere with him as a top option. And you have to account for his poor defense. But I think he would be great here as a Divo replacement. We miss a dynamic 3-point shooter/ballhandler on the perimeter without Divo. The contract is an albatross but purely as a basketball player he'd be a much better fit than Mikal.

Yeah he’s definitely not a #1 option. Would be great here as our #3 instead of Mikal for sure.

Tbh lots of players struggle when they move down from #1 option to #2 or #3... it's easy as #1 when you have the ball all the time, you build your rhythm and momentum every game... if Zach was here in Mikal's spot, he might struggle having to live off JB and KAT's scraps too... and you put Mikal on the Bulls as #1 option, he might become a franchise player avging 30ppg

Why do you love these volume inefficient ball stopper scorers anyway? Randle, LaVine, Ayton

None of them are inefficient ball stoppers?

Why do you love Cam reddish so much though? He’s one of the worst players in the league

[Riot Randolph]

Thibs is an intricate systems coach….thiers always a learning curve, things will fit into place

[Chanel Bomber]

We severely lack depth and we miss another volume 3-point shooter after (essentially) swapping Divo for Mikal/Hart on the perimeter.

KAT and Brunson are both great offensive players, yet the offense looks heavy and static with Hart, Mikal and OG on the perimeter. Not enough ballhandling, screen navigation or 3-point shooting.

I think they need to look at their remaining assets and see what they can consolidate to acquire a more mobile, more accurate shooter at the 2.

Perhaps some combination of Pacome, Kolek, the Wizards pick, plus salary filler can get you something, though I doubt our rookies have much value.

Can we even do a lavine for mikal swap? Like does it work contract wise?

Mikal makes 23 million and Lavine makes 43 so a deal is pretty much impossible (unless you throw Josh Hart in there but then we become even thinner). I don't think it makes sense for us, sadly.

[Riot Randolph]

My god Lavine for Mikal is AWFUL.:,Lavine is trash…Brudges and rest of defense is acclimating to the switching and the team defense is very precise…so plenty of hesitation across the board

[Richard4444]

We severely lack depth and we miss another volume 3-point shooter after (essentially) swapping Divo for Mikal/Hart on the perimeter.

KAT and Brunson are both great offensive players, yet the offense looks heavy and static with Hart, Mikal and OG on the perimeter. Not enough ballhandling, screen navigation or 3-point shooting.

I think they need to look at their remaining assets and see what they can consolidate to acquire a more mobile, more accurate shooter at the 2.

Perhaps some combination of Pacome, Kolek, the Wizards pick, plus salary filler can get you something, though I doubt our rookies have much value.

Can we even do a lavine for mikal swap? Like does it work contract wise?

No.

[3toheadmelo]

We severely lack depth and we miss another volume 3-point shooter after (essentially) swapping Divo for Mikal/Hart on the perimeter.

KAT and Brunson are both great offensive players, yet the offense looks heavy and static with Hart, Mikal and OG on the perimeter. Not enough ballhandling, screen navigation or 3-point shooting.

I think they need to look at their remaining assets and see what they can consolidate to acquire a more mobile, more accurate shooter at the 2.

Perhaps some combination of Pacome, Kolek, the Wizards pick, plus salary filler can get you something, though I doubt our rookies have much value.

Can we even do a lavine for mikal swap? Like does it work contract wise?

Mikal makes 23 million and Lavine makes 43 so a deal is pretty much impossible (unless you throw Josh Hart in there but then we become even thinner). I don't think it makes sense for us, sadly.

Well damn that’s unfortunate

[Riot Randolph]

I hate living in the age of hot takes, people deny all reason and logic to break a perspective …everyone thinks this is Around the horn, yes let’s judge a new team 10 games in, with a coach who has an intricate system ,(and has shown to us to consistently evolve )

[Chanel Bomber]

My god Lavine for Mikal is AWFUL.:,Lavine is trash…Brudges and rest of defense is acclimating to the switching and the team defense is very precise…so plenty of hesitation across the board

For as worrying as his defense is, I think Mikal's offense is the bigger issue. If his shot is broken and he's not making 3s or hitting free throws, teams will start sagging off him and it will hurt our spacing. At some point, teams will start paying closer attention to the percentages and leave Mikal to put more pressure on KAT and Brunson.

His defense hasn't been great but it hasn't been bad either - and I can buy the idea that he's still acclimating to a degree, although he's never been a defensive stopper to begin with.

But when you're not taking 3s and you're seemingly avoiding contact, there's a deeper issue.

The Knicks miss a volume 3-point shooter like Divo or Lavine. There are other players in that mold - the point is we miss that archetype, especially if Bridges lost his 3-point shot. Hopefully it's just a slump and he finds it again.

[Clyde_Style]

Pat, I'd like to buy a vowel center

[mpharris36]

We severely lack depth and we miss another volume 3-point shooter after (essentially) swapping Divo for Mikal/Hart on the perimeter.

KAT and Brunson are both great offensive players, yet the offense looks heavy and static with Hart, Mikal and OG on the perimeter. Not enough ballhandling, screen navigation or 3-point shooting.

I think they need to look at their remaining assets and see what they can consolidate to acquire a more mobile, more accurate shooter at the 2.

Perhaps some combination of Pacome, Kolek, the Wizards pick, plus salary filler can get you something, though I doubt our rookies have much value.

And with all that we are still #4 in offensive rating. The offensive struggles are being overblown. Yes Mikal 3 ball hasn't been great yet but more concerning is him not getting to the FT line. We need to draw more fouls and get easy pts there.

At the end of the day I don't have much worry about the offense. If Brunson was playing even half of what he was capable of playing we are probably neck and neck with BOS and CLE for best OFF rating.

Its still the defense and scheme. When we switch or hedge and recover we are way more successful then the stupid drop coverage that Thibs continues to play.

Yes Precious will help...and then Mitch if/when he comes back will add another element off the bench (to play more of a thibs drop scheme).

But even when we were making our comeback we gave up 34 pts to the bulls in the 4th qtr.

Its not the offense that is concerning to me...we play a thin rotation guys are tired late in the games and aren't rotating properly. You can ask guys to play 40 mins and then expect them to make the extra effort defensively...it doesn't work like that in the NBA.

[FrozenEnvelope]

Morning thoughts.

1. We didn't lose this game because of Hart's foul. We missed FT's, played no defense in the first half and allowed 124 points at home. That's on Thibs for not having his team ready to play from the jump.

2. Bad job by the replay assistant coach who used the challenge in the first half and didn't get the call overturned. Always save those challenges for the end cause you never know!

3. KAT is not soft and one of the elite talents offensively in the entire league. Should've had 50 but missed 4 FT's which hurt. I still loved his toughness out there with the bum knee.

4. Sucks that last shot rimmed in and out on Brunson cause he made 2 huge clutch plays before that. Just bad luck.

5. OG and Deuce were not good.

6. Mikal needs to pick it up defensively cause it's not good enough right now.

7. I like Payne! He fights out there!

8. Matt Ryan stinks. Kolek should get those minutes.

9. Still and will always love Hart but he can't be reckless in those situations. No need to attempt to block a 3pt shot. Worst you can do up 3 is give up a wide open look or foul and Hart did both. Wonder if that scuffle with LaVine got in his head. Still love him though! And so nice of him to give that kid front row tickets.

10. Give the Bulls props! They played some good defense in the first half building their lead. Vucevic and LaVine are tough to stop and that rookie Buzelis can play. And White knocking down 3 clutch FT's was not easy so credit to him.

11. Win or lose these close games are great building character, poise and chemistry. We got some easy home games coming up but we can't come out like zombies or we'll get beat! Gotta take care of business at home before we hit the road next week.