New York Knicks: Who Should Get Cut to Add Jeremy Tyler?
In just a matter of hours after Dolan decreed that no changes will be happening with the Knicks, it’s been reported that Jeremy Tyler may finally find himself on the roster. Tyler may be remembered from earlier this year when Knicks fans were collectively outraged by the fact he was left off the roster for Chris Smith. At the time, Tyler’s ill-timed foot injury was a big reason the Knicks didn’t sign him, but to fans, the gall of the Knicks to sign J.R. Smith’s brother, Chris, over any other sentient being they could have found was received as a blatant act of cronyism in the latest of puzzling moves made to placate team darling JR Smith.
Jeremy Tyler isn’t exactly going to save the season, and with Woodson’s coaching patterns, I doubt we would even see much of him, but it still is imperative for the Knicks to bring a hungry player. Last year Chris Copeland proved the importance of bringing in a hungry player, and after Woodson’s statement about just trying to find guys that want to play hard, it makes complete sense to bring him on now, though the Knicks and sense are two words that are rarely used in the same sentence.
We know that Tyler is a 6-10 big, and his play in the D-league has been impressive as of late. Currently, he is averaging a double-double at 18-10, but again, we have to temper those stats since it’s from the D-league. Still, in order for the Knicks to add Tyler, it would require bumping off one unfortunate Knick from the roster. All signs and logic points to Chris Smith, who has been a running meme, but with the Knicks you never know which direction they’ll go, so let’s review this murder’s row of possible candidates to get axed.
Sep 30, 2013; Tarrytown, NY, USA; New York Knicks center Cole Aldrich answers questions during media day at MSG Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Cole Aldrich
Aldrich has been pretty useless all season, despite being a big body, even with Chandler’s absence. Seeing him play has been a pretty ghastly sight and he looks as fluid as Bruno Sundov in the short time he’s been on the floor. Tyler is easily an upgrade from him and right now it’s looking to be a pretty close race between him and Chris Smith to get dropped.
Beno Udrih
Udrih has been one of the few Knicks that has spoken out against Woodson and is clearly unhappy with his short tenure as a Knick. With Raymond Felton and Pablo Prigioni out, it’s unlikely that the Knicks would cut a healthy point guard, but there is no denying the tension between Udrih and Wooodson as of late so I wouldn’t be shocked to see the Knicks let him go. At times, Udrih has been quite serviceable, but lately his lack of defense effort ever since letting Bradley Beal blow by him has gotten more attention than anything else he’s done, though that’s not entirely fair to him.
Toure’ Murry
Murry hasn’t gotten much playing time until recently, but he hasn’t looked quite as good as he did in summer league games. The most playing time he’s gotten all season was against Toronto when he scored 11 points on 5-11 shooting and with six assists and three steals to boot. Now would not be the time to cut him, but the weakest of Woodson’s coaching characteristics is player development, so I wouldn’t expect too much more out of him other than spot minutes once Pablo and Felton are back.
Kenyon Martin
Dec 1, 2013; New York, NY, USA; New York Knicks power forward Kenyon Martin (3) looks to pass during the first quarter against the New Orleans Pelicans at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports
Martin may be an interesting name to look at since dropping him would open up more minutes for Tyler. With the minutes Woodson’s been playing him, it’s probably a matter of time before he literally breaks, so it may be actually be a smart move to dump him now. The Knicks aren’t going anywhere this season, so there’s no real point to have a veteran that doesn’t seem to really care about being a team leader. Heck, his contract might even get picked up off the waiver wire by another team. Maybe even Brooklyn? He could fill in for Lopez and even give Kidd a much needed friend to talk to.
Chris Smith
And here we are. Chris “da gawd” Smith as message boards affectionately call him. Look, I’m sure Smith is a chill dude and I actually feel bad for him. Everyone that writes about basketball does it because they’ve been cut from their fair share of basketball teams, and it always stings the minute you realize you are a scrub. The difference between writers and Smith, is that Smith hasn’t accepted it yet, which is pretty difficult to watch from afar. He’s been coddled by JR for most of his career and has gotten pretty far for someone that was once labeled the worst player in summer league history. The Knicks should do something this season, anything really, to ingratiate themselves to the fans; and cutting Smith would mean a lot for us. It’s a small gesture that doesn’t affect anyone but still corrects a major wrong Knick fans can’t get over. With that said, there’s no way I’d recommend anyone being cut other than “Da Gawd”. Sorry buddy, but at least you picked up a ton of new Twitter followers.
Follow Richard Bertin on Twitter and check out his Knicks’ blog: “Starks Raving Mad”
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