Dennis Smith, Jr. Thread

[Juggynaut]

Not his biggest fan, but he's got NBA talent. I still have some faith in him. If he doesn't improve in his 3rd season is when I'll give up on him.

[Worst_to_First]

With the investment we are putting into DSJ and Knox can’t help but think if David Griffin had already shut us down in an Anthony Davis trade.

[ny-n-md]

I can’t understand “the made up minds” already on this kid. The potential is there. Not a 1 to 1 comparison but remember Billups? He bounced around before landing in Detroit and finally finding his way as a pg. he looked like a terrible bust from that lottery early on.

What about Curry? He didn’t look like a generational player early. Questions about his health and ability to run an offense and play defense. There was even debate about whether you build around him or Monta Ellis. How ridiculous does that sound now?

Give him some time to find his way. I see all of the potential and it’s up to the Knicks to bring it out of him.

I never understand why teams draft players but then don’t take the time to DEVELOP them. That’s up to the organization to invest in their asset. There was obviously something there that they saw and felt would fit on their team. Coach them. Develop them. Dumping them makes no sense unless the return is just undeniably better

[Jeff Van Gully]

With the investment we are putting into DSJ and Knox can’t help but think if David Griffin had already shut us down in an Anthony Davis trade.

nah. you treat your people with professionalism no matter what. i wouldn't assume any of this means that the kids are a lock to stay. it would be worse to shut them out, especially before anything is finalized.

merry pills seems to be a lot better about that than we've seen.

[GONYK]

With the investment we are putting into DSJ and Knox can’t help but think if David Griffin had already shut us down in an Anthony Davis trade.

What investment? What have we done that's different from 3 weeks ago?

[Jeff Van Gully]

I can’t understand “the made up minds” already on this kid. The potential is there. Not a 1 to 1 comparison but remember Billups? He bounced around before landing in Detroit and finally finding his way as a pg. he looked like a terrible bust from that lottery early on.

What about Curry? He didn’t look like a generational player early. Questions about his health and ability to run an offense and play defense. There was even debate about whether you build around him or Monta Ellis. How ridiculous does that sound now?

Give him some time to find his way. I see all of the potential and it’s up to the Knicks to bring it out of him.

I never understand why teams draft players but then don’t take the time to DEVELOP them. That’s up to the organization to invest in their asset. There was obviously something there that they saw and felt would fit on their team. Coach them. Develop them. Dumping them makes no sense unless the return is just undeniably better

it's not fair to close the book on ANY of these kids. this is the point of having kids. they most likely aren't the pros they're going to be just yet.

[G_K_F]

Smith Jr is uninspired with a big ego. He reminds me of JR Smith in terms of mentality.

I don’t like this dude at all. He’s not a winning player because he doesn’t put the effort in.

[Jeff Van Gully]

Smith Jr is uninspired with a big ego. He reminds me of JR Smith in terms of mentality.

I don’t like this dude at all. He’s not a winning player because he doesn’t put the effort in.

i think he's a tad misguided and misunderstood. for his flaws, i think he actually means well. and he is a way smarter player than JR smith. good lord.

DSJ doesn't read the floor as well as you i would like. but he's not selfish, IMO. he passes well and looks to pass. but i have yet to see him operate within a scheme outside of what he creates off the drive or p/r.

also... he desperately needs to improve his shot. if DSJ could shoot from distance reliably, he could be like a lillard with better passing ability.

his ability to get to the cup is special. his athleticism is wowing. he's a bully at heart.

[Garbagelo]

He has no identity aside from dunks, which is like 10% of the game

[SmoothLefty21]

He's a terrible PnR player, that's my biggest concern with him--even more than shooting or defense. Any decent PnR defense bottles him up. I shudder at the thought of him in a playoff game where the pace slows and it's a halfcourt game.

His ceiling is a Dennis Schroeder type of backup PG but I don't think he'll ever be that good.

[ny-n-md]

He's a terrible PnR player, that's my biggest concern with him--even more than shooting or defense. Any decent PnR defense bottles him up. I shudder at the thought of him in a playoff game where the pace slows and it's a halfcourt game.

His ceiling is a Dennis Schroeder type of backup PG but I don't think he'll ever be that good.

He’s already better than him. Look at their first 2 seasons and compare. We really don’t like DSJ around here, huh?

[SmoothLefty21]

He's a terrible PnR player, that's my biggest concern with him--even more than shooting or defense. Any decent PnR defense bottles him up. I shudder at the thought of him in a playoff game where the pace slows and it's a halfcourt game.

His ceiling is a Dennis Schroeder type of backup PG but I don't think he'll ever be that good.

He’s already better than him. Look at their first 2 seasons and compare. We really don’t like DSJ around here, huh?

How is he already better than Schroeder?

[ny-n-md]

He's a terrible PnR player, that's my biggest concern with him--even more than shooting or defense. Any decent PnR defense bottles him up. I shudder at the thought of him in a playoff game where the pace slows and it's a halfcourt game.

His ceiling is a Dennis Schroeder type of backup PG but I don't think he'll ever be that good.

He’s already better than him. Look at their first 2 seasons and compare. We really don’t like DSJ around here, huh?

How is he already better than Schroeder?

He had a better first 2 seasons and Schroeder’s numbers aren’t even more impressive now.

[SmoothLefty21]

He’s already better than him. Look at their first 2 seasons and compare. We really don’t like DSJ around here, huh?

How is he already better than Schroeder?

He had a better first 2 seasons and Schroeder’s numbers aren’t even more impressive now.

Comparing their first to seasons doesn't mean anything; players develop at different rates. Schroeder peaked at 18-19 PPG and six dimes, shooting 45% from the floor for a bad team. That's about where I see DSJ.

Not to mention by advanced metrics DSJ is a bottom-third PnR ballhandler.

[Fat Kat]

How is he already better than Schroeder?

He had a better first 2 seasons and Schroeder’s numbers aren’t even more impressive now.

Comparing their first to seasons doesn't mean anything; players develop at different rates. Schroeder peaked at 18-19 PPG and six dimes, shooting 45% from the floor for a bad team. That's about where I see DSJ.

Not to mention by advanced metrics DSJ is a bottom-third PnR ballhandler.

Read on Twitter

While he has a way to go, he’s already a good PnR guard. He sees the floor well and puts pressure on the defense at the rim. DSJ needs to get into great shape and improve his jumper.

[Cookies4Life]

I can’t understand “the made up minds” already on this kid. The potential is there. Not a 1 to 1 comparison but remember Billups? He bounced around before landing in Detroit and finally finding his way as a pg. he looked like a terrible bust from that lottery early on.

What about Curry? He didn’t look like a generational player early. Questions about his health and ability to run an offense and play defense. There was even debate about whether you build around him or Monta Ellis. How ridiculous does that sound now?

Give him some time to find his way. I see all of the potential and it’s up to the Knicks to bring it out of him.

I never understand why teams draft players but then don’t take the time to DEVELOP them. That’s up to the organization to invest in their asset. There was obviously something there that they saw and felt would fit on their team. Coach them. Develop them. Dumping them makes no sense unless the return is just undeniably better

Well said. I thought there was a shift in philosophies with this fanbase, done with the whole win now mode theory/dump the entire farm for one player, etc. We were supposed to be a lot more patient now and ok with our young guys developing.

A lot of this fanbase are dying for guys like DSJ and Frank to be dumped for next to nothing. It makes absolutely no sense to me.Smith showed more than enough here during his brief stint that leads me to believe he's a talented player with much room to grow. That kid ever gets a consistent jumper and we're talking about a very solid player at the absolute minimum.

In Frank's case, everyone- including the Mavs who wanted to select him just one pick later- knew he would take several years to develop. he's the epitome of a project player who needed much time to improve his skillset and acclimate to how the game is played in the US. He's had several coaches already, had idiots like Jack and Mudiay- expiring players with no future here- playing ahead of him with the coaching staff investing in those guys instead. He's kept his head up and has been ok with playing out of position for most of his time here.

I'd rather keep all these kids- this team has sucked for so long. They've been tanking for several seasons now to accrue these players and now fans want to dump these guys while they're still so very young. It seems so counterproductive to me. All of them have flaws and all of them have room to improve. It would be refreshing if our fanbase actually preached the patience they were talking about the last few seasons. The ship is righting itself, albeit maybe at a slower pace than most would want.

[ny-n-md]

I can’t understand “the made up minds” already on this kid. The potential is there. Not a 1 to 1 comparison but remember Billups? He bounced around before landing in Detroit and finally finding his way as a pg. he looked like a terrible bust from that lottery early on.

What about Curry? He didn’t look like a generational player early. Questions about his health and ability to run an offense and play defense. There was even debate about whether you build around him or Monta Ellis. How ridiculous does that sound now?

Give him some time to find his way. I see all of the potential and it’s up to the Knicks to bring it out of him.

I never understand why teams draft players but then don’t take the time to DEVELOP them. That’s up to the organization to invest in their asset. There was obviously something there that they saw and felt would fit on their team. Coach them. Develop them. Dumping them makes no sense unless the return is just undeniably better

Well said. I thought there was a shift in philosophies with this fanbase, done with the whole win now mode theory/dump the entire farm for one player, etc. We were supposed to be a lot more patient now and ok with our young guys developing.

A lot of this fan are dying for guys like DSJ and Frank to be dumped for next to nothing. It makes absolutely no sense to me.Smith showed more than enough here during his brief stint that leads me to believe he's a talented player with much room to grow. That kid ever gets a consistent jumper and we're talking about a very solid player at the absolute minimum.

In Frank's case, everyone- including the Mavs who wanted to select him just one pick later- knew he would take several years to develop. he's the epitome of a project player who needed much time to improve his skillset and acclimate to how the game is played in the US. He's had several coaches already, had idiots like Jack and Mudiay- expiring players with no future here- playing ahead of him with the coaching staff investing in those guys instead. He's kept his head up and has been ok with playing out of position for most of his time here.

I'd rather keep all these kids- this team has sucked for so long. They've been tanking for several seasons now to accrue these players and now fans want to dump these guys while they're still so very young. It seems so counterproductive to me. All of them have flaws and all of them have room to improve. It would be refreshing if our fanbase actually preached the patience they were talking about the last few seasons. The ship is righting itself, albeit maybe at a slower pace than most would want.

I completely agree.

[blueNorange]

He had a better first 2 seasons and Schroeder’s numbers aren’t even more impressive now.

Comparing their first to seasons doesn't mean anything; players develop at different rates. Schroeder peaked at 18-19 PPG and six dimes, shooting 45% from the floor for a bad team. That's about where I see DSJ.

Not to mention by advanced metrics DSJ is a bottom-third PnR ballhandler.

Read on Twitter

While he has a way to go, he’s already a good PnR guard. He sees the floor well and puts pressure on the defense at the rim. DSJ needs to get into great shape and improve his jumper.

okay ... but he doesn't do that consistently though, in fact he does nothing consistent other than put up mediocre numbers.

this isn't even a discussion because one of kyrie or kemba will be a knick.

[vallen]

meh nobody wants to eat crow or discus long arms anymore. DSJ is going to be disliked here no matter what, but mostly because of ego.

[blueNorange]

meh nobody wants to eat crow or discus long arms anymore. DSJ is going to be disliked here no matter what, but mostly because of ego.

he’s not a good basketball player, that is not something being made up.

what’s being made up is excuses for dsj.