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Knicks: How Wesley Matthews’ Injury Impacts Free Agency

By Maxwell Ogden

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As previously discussed on Daily Knicks, one of the New York Knicks’ top targets this coming summer is likely to be shooting guard Wesley Matthews. The Portland Trail Blazers star is a 3-and-D specialist whose skill set and toughness make him an ideal fit in the Triangle Offense.

Unfortunately, Matthews’ 2014-15 season was cut short by a ruptured achilles tendon.

This is a heartbreaking injury in the midst of an excellent season from the 28-year-old.

For the Trail Blazers, their championship aspirations take a major hit with their starting shooting guard going down. For the Knicks, their plans this coming offseason will be shaped greatly by this news.

The idea of potentially signing Matthews is now met with extraordinary risk.

Higher Risk

Any time a player suffers a season-ending injury, it becomes a red flag on their resume. Even when that player is as durable as Wesley Matthews, it’s hard to overlook something as severe as an achilles rupture.

Many times, players fail to ever fully recover from such an event.

“What’s the normal timetable? Eight months or something like that? I’ll try to be back in five.” – Wesley Matthews after suffering a ruptured achilles tendon.

Thus far in his six-season career, Matthews has played in 441 out of a possible 454 games.He played in all 82 games in 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2013-14, completed the full 66 games in the lockout-shortened 2011-12 and has played in all 60 games thus far in 2014-15.

The only time Matthews had ever been sidelined was in 2012-13, when he missed a mere 13 games.

During his career, Matthews actually acquired the nickname of, “Iron Man.” He’s been known to play through minor injuries and has averaged upwards of 33.5 minutes a night in each of the past five seasons.

In the interview following his tragic achilles injury, Matthews put his commitment on display by asking, “What’s the normal timetable? Eight months or something like that? I’ll try to be back in five.”

You can watch the full interview below:

The heart of a warrior.

Nevertheless, a ruptured achilles tendon is as serious an injury as you’ll find in basketball—or any walk of life, for that matter.

Thus, if the Knicks are to offer Matthews a contract this coming summer, they will proceed with caution. His immediate market value has taken a hit, but if New York is to pry him away from Portland, Phil Jackson will need to make a healthy offer.

The former Marquette Golden Eagles star has gone on record to say that he loves playing in Portland, and the Trail Blazers would prefer to keep him. Their top priority will be to re-sign LaMarcus Aldridge, however, which creates improved odds of New York landing Matthews.

The good news for the Knicks: the cost will be lower than it would’ve been before the injury.

Lower Cost

Wesley Matthews isn’t a max contract player, but he’s one of the best 3-and-D specialists in the NBA. He was on pace to be an All-Defensive Team selection before the injury and is a genuinely elite sharpshooter.

Converting at a clip of 38.9 percent from 3-point range, Matthews is currently No. 4 in the NBA with 173 3-point field goals made.

Due to the injury, Matthews’ market value will come down and the price of potential contract offers will follow. Portland is the most likely candidate to offer him a deal in excess of $10 million, but even that’s less than guaranteed.

If any player can make a full recovery from achilles surgery, it’s Matthews.

That doesn’t mean a general manager will invest their money in accordance to his track record of toughness and durability.

What New York can offer Matthews is the opportunity for a storybook return in a massive market—and they can do it just one year before the rising cap.

If Phil Jackson is willing to invest in Matthews as his 3-and-D specialist in the Triangle Offense, he could fill a similar role to what Metta World Peace did with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2009-10. He’ll be physical on defense and will space the floor offensively.

The question is, how much are the Knicks willing to invest?

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