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NY Knicks: 3 things we’ve learned from team workouts so far

By Jeffrey Bellone

Tom Thibodeau, New York Knicks (Photo by Zhong Zhi/Getty Images)
Tom Thibodeau, New York Knicks (Photo by Zhong Zhi/Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MARCH 02: (NEW YORK DAILIES OUT) Russell Westbrook #0 of the Houston Rockets in action against Frank Ntilikina #11 of the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on March 02, 2020 in New York City. The Knicks defeated the Rockets 125-123. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /

1) Thibodeau’s fundamentals

Knicks fans are used to this: a new coach takes over the team and one of the first things they do is talk about things like hard work, defense, and all of the clichés that help you win basketball games. Well, Tom Thibodeau is no different. He was asked about team identity and he listed defense, rebounding, sharing the ball, all of those nice things.

However, there was something interesting in his list of fundamentals and that was corner threes. The Knicks ranked 27th in their frequency of corner threes last season. One of the most glaring issues with their roster construction was their inability to space the floor. RJ Barrett could drive to the rim all he wanted, but he often ran into a clogged lane without any wings to kick the ball out to make help defenders pay.

Perhaps that will all change under Thibodeau. Something, as he noted in his answer, that will be dependent on the front office acquiring the right personnel to allow the Knicks to capitalize on the efficient three-pointer.

Focusing on the players already on the roster, this could create an opportunity for Frank Ntilikina to expand his game. We already know what he can do on defense, one of the overwhelming identity points on any Thibs-coached team. But last season, he showed flashes of what he can do from the corner of the floor.

On limited attempts, Ntilikina ranked in the 93rd percentile among guards in shooting accuracy on corner threes. He was in the 7th percentile the season prior to this one. Whether or not he can turn this into one of his strengths could be key in deciding how he fits long-term on the Knicks roster as a lockdown defender who can also help on the offensive side of the floor.

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