New York Knicks: The obligatory Trey Burke overreaction post

Trey Burke is swooping and hooping his way into the hearts of New York Knicks fans. With his Allen Iverson-esque look, what should we expect going forward from Burke?

For those of you who don’ know about the newest member of the New York Knicks, Trey Burke was a college superstar at the University of Michigan. On one of the most loaded college basketball teams in recent memory, Burke was the AP Player of the Year.

Burke, a sophomore, was hands down the best player on the team. He played with current Knicks shooting guard Tim Hardaway Jr., as well as current and former NBA players such as Glenn Robinson III, Nik Stauskas, Caris LeVert, and Mitch McGary.

Burke essentially took home every single award during the 2012-13 NCAAB regular season. He led the Wolverines to the No. 1 ranking in the country, as well as the 2013 National Championship game.

Burke then set out for the NBA, selected ninth by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2013 NBA Draft. The T-Wolves had no intention of keeping Burke, so they traded him for Gorgui Dieng and Shabazz Muhammed.

Burke didn’t pan out as the point guard of the future in Utah, but that’s not to say he was that bad—just not what the Jazz were looking for. He signed with the Wizards in 2016, where he didn’t play all too much behind John Wall and Bradley Beal.

The Knicks scooped him up on Jan. 14, 2018 on a prove-it deal. So far, so good.

Bounding, But Mostly Astounding

Trey Burke had one of the more impressive performances in recent Knicks history when he went off and scored 14 consecutive points against the Phoenix Suns. Now, as every fan of every team does, we must overreact.

Trey Burke, along with Jonathan Simmons, are proving that G-League players can make huge contributions. He’s worked his way up from the G-League to now being the first guard off the bench for the Knicks.

He’s currently averaging 9.3 points, and 3.8 assists in just 132 minutes per game. I’m not a huge fan of the per 36 minutes stat, but Burke’s are staggering.

Per 36 Minutes, he’s currently averaging 25.5 points and 10.5 assists on 61.5 percent shooting from the field. So, if my math is correct, if he played 36 minutes he would be the NBA’s Trae Young.

Burke is providing the Knicks with a bench scorer who can create their own shot—which no guard on the Knicks’ bench had been able to do. With his short stature, cornrows and headband, he looks exactly like Allen Iverson.

Should We Buy Into The Hype?

Should we buy into the hype surrounding Burke? I’m not always the most optimistic person when it comes to the Knicks, but my gut is saying that this is a long-term fit.

Burke is a proven player. He dominated college, and has shown some ability in the pros with the Jazz. What held him back in Utah had little to do with his talent or skill levels.

According to Marc Berman of The New York Post, Burke explained what exactly held him back during his tumultuous tenure in Utah.

"“Young Trey Burke was not all the way focused on basketball,’’ Burke said before the Knicks beat the Jazz 117-115. “Distractions going on in my life as a young player.“At the same time, I do feel I did a great job my rookie season. Second year, they drafted another point guard [Exum] — which kind of messed with my mind. It played with me a little bit. That’s where it went wrong. My rookie season the coach [Tyrone Corbin] gets fired. Going into the second year, it’s a whole new coaching staff to get used to. Sometimes it don’t work out.’’"

It’s a sign of Burke’s maturity that he’s willing to speak so candidly about his experience.

This is open to interpretation, but I’m going to choose the benefit of the doubt. The Knicks are in a winning situation. He’s making just $784,160 in 2017-18, and he’ll be owed a non-guaranteed $1.8 million in 2018-19—easily affordable costs.

If he can continue to perform at a high level, he will see himself become a starter or main rotational cog very quickly.

As a 25-year old millionaire who’s on the record saying he got distracted by the luxuries of the NBA, Burke can speak of his experience with Frank Ntilikina, and make sure he stays the course in New York City, where it’s very easy to get distracted.

Burke can rewrite his career narrative at just 25 years of age.

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The New York Knicks took a gamble by signing Trey Burke. Hopefully he can return the favor.