New York Knicks: Encouraging statistics from 6-5 start

5. Finally A Facilitator—Or Two

Over the course of the previous three seasons, the New York Knicks suffered from the glaring absence of an adequate facilitator. That much was firmly established by the fact that no Knick has averaged at least 5.0 assists per game since Raymond Felton in 2013-14.

It’s early, but both Jarrett Jack and Frank Ntilikina are already sitting pretty at or above that elusive 5.0 mark—and neither player should be expected to regress.

Jack leads the Knicks with an average of 5.4 assists to just 1.6 turnovers in 25.7 minutes per game. Not only has Jack revitalized the Knicks’ offense, but he’s accumulated an outstanding assist-to-turnover ratio of 3.50—No. 5 in the NBA amongst players averaging at least 5.0 assists per game.

Those numbers become even more impressive when translated to averages of 7.6 assists and 2.2 turnovers per 36 minutes.

Ntilikina isn’t far behind with averages of 5.0 assists to 2.2 turnovers in just 19.9 minutes per game—good for an efficient assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.25. The numbers jump from solid to awe-inspiring when one considers that Ntilikina is averaging 9.1 assists per 36 minutes—borderline elite production.

With Ntilikina and Jack facilitating the offense, New York is averaging its most points per game since 2010-11 and its most assists per contest since 1994-95.

Those last two numbers are a sign that Jack and Ntilikina are flourishing—as is Jeff Hornacek’s system.