What would a successful season look like for the New York Knicks in 2017-18? Former Knicks point guard Greg Anthony weighed in on the subject.
For the first time in what may be decades, the New York Knicks have a young core and a long-term vision. After 16 years of valuing free agency over the NBA Draft, the Knicks have finally struck a balance in their attempts to create sustainable success.
Although the talent on the roster is undeniably intriguing, the need to develop the core is taking precedence over a blind push for the postseason in 2017-18.
It’s difficult to sell the idea of a long-term rebuild to fans of a franchise that hasn’t been to the playoffs since 2013. It’s even more challenging to sell the idea of a long-term rebuild to fans of an organization that hasn’t won a championship since 1973.
According to Marc Berman of The New York Post, however, Greg Anthony is the latest former Knick to state that a successful 2017-18 season shouldn’t be measured in wins and losses.
"“I’m not looking at number of victories,’’ Greg Anthony told The Post. “It’s what direction these kids will go in terms of their development. The young core guys [Frank] Ntilikina, [Kristaps] Porzingis, [Willy] Hernangomez to sense what their ceilings are going to be. Getting wins is important to run with it, but bigger is their development and [to] determine what their ceiling is. It gives the organization an opportunity to set a path.’’"
Anthony joins Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson as ex-Knicks who have expressed the belief that the future matters more than placating the fans with an untenable run.
New York has the talent level and coaching to reach the 2018 NBA Playoffs. Rather than worrying about wins and losses in 2017-18, however, many believe the Knicks should focus on creating a formula that will equate to glory that can be maintained.
All will be pleased if New York makes the playoffs organically, but it would be doing itself a disservice by sacrificing the younger players’ development for a veteran’s playing time.
Thus, while fan may want to see the Knicks end the four-year postseason drought, the optimal route to success would be to build naturally and accept the results as they come.
New York has built a deep core of 25-and-under players with intriguing potential. That group features Ron Baker, Damyean Dotson, Tim Hardaway Jr., Willy Hernangomez, Enes Kanter, Frank Ntilikina, and Kristaps Porzingis.
Every one of those players has the raw ability to make a nightly impact, but realizing their potential will be as much about opportunity as anything else.
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In Greg Anthony’s eyes, the best way for the New York Knicks to experience a successful season would be to give those young players the opportunity to learn by fire.