2. Depth
The New York Knicks have made vast improvements at point guard by trading for Derrick Rose and signing Brandon Jennings. Both project to produce with far more consistency than Jose Calderon and Jerian Grant were able to in 2015-16.
The harsh reality is, both Rose and Jennings are subject to missing multiple games due to their bouts with the injury bug.
Chasson Randle is unlikely to be ready to take on a starting role in 2016-17. What he can provide, however, is valuable minutes behind Jennings and Rose as an athletic floor-spacer who can push the pace and facilitate at a respectable level.
If Jeff Hornacek manages to bring the best out of Randle defensively, then he’d be the perfect backup to the backup.
Rose played in 66 out of 82 games in 2015-16, which was his highest game total since 2010-11. Jennings was active for all but five games once he made his season debut, but was recovering from a ruptured achilles tendon.
There’s no guaranteeing that Jennings or Rose will miss time in 2016-17—and Knicks fans should hope they don’t—but it’s better to take precaution than to pay the price for an absence of depth.
Next: No. 1