Knicks: For RJ Barrett, consistency is critical for success

New York Knicks wing RJ Barrett needs to find consistency in his second season in the NBA.

The New York Knicks need RJ Barrett to be a leader. There is no other way to slice it.

All texts on leadership–whether it be this book by a basketball mind the Knicks are intimately familiar with or this one by a researcher and professor–have a common throughline: leaders must be consistent.

If RJ Barrett is going to become the franchise cornerstone that the Knicks need, that Knicks fans desperately want him to be, that consistency is going to be the single most important area of improvement in year two.

Through 6 games so far this year, there is universal improvement in points, rebounds, and assists per game according to Basketball Reference. It’s how he got those numbers where the lack of consistency arises.

Opening night was the high water mark for this young season. His 26/8/5 stat line had Knicks Twitter all aflutter. I was right there with them. This was the guy we had hoped for when the Knicks drafted him.

Game two was a different story. Take effective field goal percentage, for example. Against the Pacers, it was a staggering 83.3%.  Versus the Sixers, it dipped down to 13.3%–a drop that you’d love at Coney Island but loathe at MSG.

It goes on like that. Everything was down in game two: Total rebounds, assists, plus/minus. Basically everything but turnovers, which were up 400%.

He scored 10 points on 2/15 shooting. Had it not been for his 6/8 mark from the free-throw line, that scoring figure would have been even worse. Free throw shooting has been the only bright spot in his shooting statistics. His field goal percentage, three-point field goal percentage, and effective field goal percentage are all down from his rookie numbers.

There is a similar pattern over games three and four, though admittedly not as drastic. He scored more points on better shooting in game three, while also posting a 2:1 assist:turnover ratio. All of that dipped again in game four. A kiddie coaster, if you will.

Game 5 was his worst so far. He missed all eight of his three-point attempts. The kiddie coaster continued, leading to his most recent performance against Indiana in which he shot 8-15 from the field, including 4-5 from downtown.

But that’s just it. His 17.0/7.0/3.5 stat line is not bad for a player who cannot even legally purchase a glass of wine with dinner. If you took it at face value, you’d be happy with the growth. The important next step for RJ Barrett is hitting those figures without the wild fluctuation from game-to-game.

Microsoft CEO Sataya Nadella argues in his book that “Consistency over time is trust.” Knicks fans just want to be able to trust RJ Barrett.