RJ Barrett, since being drafted third overall by the NY Knicks in 2019, has lived up to expectations of being a very good player with untapped potential.
Especially under new head coach Tom Thibodeau, Barrett has been one of the best and most efficient players on this year’s Knicks squad.
At only 20 years old, RJ has already shown us glimpses of the player that he can eventually become in the near future.
RJ is often overlooked because of the anomalies, such as Luka Doncic and Zion Williamson, who come into the league at 19 years of age and absolutely dominate. In reality, stars such as them are very uncommon, and players that young typically need much more time to develop and produce at the levels that those two do now.
Barrett, since coming to the Knicks after just one season with Duke, has always been known as a player with the ability to score the basketball at a high level while also having tremendous size and strength for his position.
With that being said, he came into the league with a crafty and efficient ability to get to the rim, but his jump shot was always a red flag when evaluating him as a player.
He was also considered to be a player who relied too much on his scoring, showing a lack of an ability to create for his teammates and facilitate.
The NY Knicks should think twice before trading RJ Barrett.
There are three crucial reasons why the Knicks should avoid the temptation of moving RJ Barrett at the trade deadline.
One of these reasons is it will be extremely difficult to replace the efficiency and stability that he provides for the Knicks on a nightly basis.
In addition to that, Barrett is the prototype of Thibodeau’s ideal wing threat. Here at Daily Knicks, we’ve even gone as far as to compare RJ to another one of Coach Thibs’ favorite players, Jimmy Butler.
The third and final reason is Barrett has shown drastic improvement from his rookie season to his current sophomore season with the Knicks, especially when discussing his 3-point shooting.
Here we’ll be discussing in-depth how invaluable RJ Barrett has become and why the Knicks should be hesitant to trade him.