New York Knicks: How to define a ‘patient’ approach

The New York Knicks have preached patience in the lead-up to training camp, but how will this go about?

The keyword of the prelude to the 2018-19 season has been patience for the New York Knicks. An unusual word to use on a team that traded draft picks for quick fixes in previous regimes, it’s an early sign of a perception change.

Knicks president Steve Mills has stood in front of this idea, and even said owner James Dolan supports the slower pace to the organization’s potential rise to the playoffs, and further, in the 2018-19 season and beyond.

How can this patient approach be defined, though, as the Knicks try to live up to it?

Player development

In the town hall for season ticket holders and the preseason press conference, head coach David Fizdale preached “player development,” particularly for the team’s youngest players.

The Knicks have recent draft picks Frank Ntilikina, Kevin Knox and Mitchell Robinson to develop not just this year, but in future campaigns, given how all sit at age 21 or younger.

Ntilikina, who took a step forward in height and muscle, will look to prove this process properly in his sophomore campaign with shooting improvement to maximize what he can do on offense. If he follows through with in-season success, it only pushes the Knicks in the right direction.

Ntilikina is only part one of this, as Robinson enters New York as a physically-intriguing player, but needs time to acclimate to the professional game after skipping college. Knox will play as a 19 year old in 2018-19, as well, and may take a few years to reach whatever his potential is.

It even goes beyond these three, with future draftees that join the Knicks in 2019 and beyond. They also need patience to become quality NBA contributors; it’s not an overnight process, either, no matter who arrives.

Don’t trade first round picks

Mills made it clear: the Knicks will not trade first round picks in their current state. It’s an unusual practice for the franchise, but in this slow-burn process, they seem intent on accumulating young players to join the aforementioned group and Kristaps Porzingis.

Shortly after this, Jimmy Butler requested a trade from the Minnesota Timberwolves and named the Knicks as a preferred destination, which provided a coincidental, important test for the front office.

Butler has not moved from Minnesota yet, but even after he does, to keep this patient approach, the Knicks can’t send picks away. Without expectations to make noise in the playoffs, let alone advance past the regular season, there’s little reason to do this before the league-changing class of free agents in 2019.

The New York Knicks need to fulfill two tasks to remain patient. As struggles potentially continue in 2018-19, will they stay on this route?