B/R lists NY Knicks as ‘top landing spot’ for DeMar DeRozan this summer

The NY Knicks have been an unbelievable surprise to even the most optimistic of fans throughout the majority of the 2020-21 campaign, and the joy ride has continued on during this final stretch of the season.

Since the All-Star break, New York has gone 15-9 and is in the midst of a stellar winning streak that has now ballooned to nine straight, their best victory span since 2013. As a whole, they find themselves boasting an overall record of 34-27 and are slotted into the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference standings.

Now, while there are still 11 games remaining on the regular-season schedule and an entire playoff run left to be discovered (writing that felt both odd and exciting all at the same time), there are some who are under the impression that it’s never too early to start planning for the offseason.

Like most teams, the idea for the Knickerbockers is to land top-tier talents in an effort to better build a case for contention and, while they’ll likely wind up having two first-round picks in this coming draft, their best bet at landing commodities to help them win now will be via the free agency market, where they’ll have plenty of options to choose from.

Already, many have started to put in their predictions for who Leon Rose and co. will look to pursue on the open market and, according to the folks at Bleacher Report, the Big Apple appears to be viewed as the ‘top landing spot’ for one of this year’s biggest available names, DeMar DeRozan.

NY Knicks viewed as ‘top landing spot’ for DeMar DeRozan this offseason

Citing the veteran’s well-documented scoring prowess and the obvious ineptitude of New York’s offensive unit (26th in the league in points-per-game), writer Grant Hughes is under the impression that a pairing between the two parties could be mutually beneficial:

"Obviously, you don’t fix an offense just by targeting a player with a high scoring average (DeRozan is at 21.1 this year; 20.1 for his career), and the four-time All-Star’s aversion to three-point shooting definitely wouldn’t address one of the Knicks’ key failings this season. However, DeRozan has been above the league average in true shooting percentage in each of the past two seasons.Whether putting opponents through the mid-post ringer or suckering them into fouls, DeRozan has maximized his efficiency despite playing an inherently inefficient style.With Julius Randle’s perimeter accuracy looking less flukey every day, DeRozan’s lack of spacing would hurt less than you might think. And few teams are better equipped to offset his defensive ineptitude than the Knicks, whom head coach Tom Thibodeau has predictably molded into a top-three outfit on that end.There’s a general conception of the Knicks as a young, rebuilding team. That said, Thibodeau has always been a win-now coach and Randle, New York’s best player, is in his seventh season at age 26."

Hughes would go on to bring up the fear that many (including myself) could have of such a signing, as the presence of another high-usage wing could run the risk of stunting the tremendously improved RJ Barrett’s progressions.

While the 31-year-old is having himself a solid season with the San Antonio Spurs, boasting averages of 21 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 4.4 assists on 49 percent shooting from the field, the NY Knicks may want to pursue a few other available players before landing on DeMar DeRozan.

What say you Knicks fans? Would you like to see the former All-Star in orange and blue, or would you rather the front office embark on a different path in free agency?

Whatever your thoughts on the matter are, make sure to leave them in the comments section below!