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New York Knicks: Arron Afflalo is a Bargain Signing

By Maxwell Ogden

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Since entering the NBA in 2007, Arron Afflalo has been unable to attain continuity. He’s played for four teams in eight seasons, spending no more than three yearas with any one of those squads.

Despite that reality, Afflalo has found a way to be a consistent source of offense for his respective teams. Phil Jackson and Steve Mills are well-aware of that reality.

According to Ramona Shelburne of ESPN Los Angeles, the former UCLA Bruins star agreed to a two-year, $16 million contract with the New York Knicks.

Signing Afflalo at that rate is a true bargain.

$8 million per season may seem like a lot, but it isn’t. It’s 11.9 percent of the projected $67.1 million salary cap for 2015-16 and 8.8 percent of the projected $90 million salary cap for 2016-17.

That, unto itself, makes a player of Afflalo’s caliber a bargain signing.

As a player, Afflalo hasn’t lived up to his brief, “Kobe Bryant stopper,” hype on the defensive end. What he has done is round into form as one of the NBA’s most efficient and effective shooters.

Where he’s played hasn’t hurt him very much at all. Simply put, Afflalo can score in any system.

The numbers back that statement up:

That, coupled with his skill set, makes him an excellent player for the Triangle Offense.

The system is being built around eight-time All-Star Carmelo Anthony and 2015’s No. 4 overall draft pick Kristaps Porzingis. Anthony will play the Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan role as the primary scoring option, while Porzingis is somewhere along the lines of Pau Gasol.

Every system requires shooters, however, and Afflalo is the perfect man for the job.

Over the course of his eight NBA seasons, Afflalo has compiled a career slash line of .453/.385/.819. He’s averaged 11.4 points per game over that time, but that’s a very misleading number.

Afflalo has averaged at least 15.2 points per game in three of his past four seasons.

In 2013-14, Afflalo set a new career-high with 18.2 points scored per game. He did so while shooting an incredibly efficient 45.9 percent from the field and 42.7 percent from beyond the arc.

If Afflalo can play anywhere near that level in 2015-16, life will be significantly easier for Anthony as a scorer.

There’s the clear possibility that Afflalo struggles to live up to the hype and becomes a wasted $8 million. That won’t be much of a hit on the 2016-17 salary cap, though, and his two-year deal significantly limits the risk.

This signing alone may not push the Knicks towards championship contention, but it’s a sign that Jackson and Mills are thinking big picture. Finding role players to complement the stars of the show is as critical as signing the stars themselves.

With a rising cap in 2016, New York could be building towards something special.

Next: The Knicks will meet with free agent forward Derrick Williams

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