New York Knicks: Players for Frank Ntilikina to study in isolation

Kyle Lowry

The Toronto Raptors have featured two future Hall of Fame perimeter players in Vince Carter and Kawhi Leonard. Yet, there’s a legitimate case to be made that it’s point guard Kyle Lowry who is the most important player in franchise history.

The reason behind the New York Knicks rival being so successful is his ability to make average or better contributions in every phase of the game.

That may be a tall task for Frank Ntilikina, but it’s not something that he’s far from incapable of doing. Lowry bottoms out around 15-5-5. While he’s a more natural facilitator than Ntilikina, New York’s clay is ready to be molded.

The key trait to study: Lowry balances being able to get the offense into its sets with playing without the ball entirely, due in large part to the drastic improvements he’s made to his jumper.

Between 2007-08 and 2009-10, Lowry shot just 26.2 percent from beyond the three-point line. Between 2010-11 and 2019-20, that figure has spiked to 37.5 percent—implying that Ntilikina could overcome his early shooting woes to convert efficiently, as well.

Whether it’s his improvement as a shooter or the well-rounded nature of his game, Lowry is a player whom Ntilikina should happily study.

Doing so could make New York Knicks guard Frank Ntilikina all-around the contributor he’s capable of becoming.