NY Knicks: 3 offseason point guard upgrade options
By Max Hoover
NY Knicks: The Poison Pill – De’Aaron Fox
How does De’Aaron Fox fit with the Knicks?
From an offensive standpoint, Fox might be an ideal fit for what Tom Thibodeau wants to do on offense. Fox is averaging 25.2 points and 7.2 assists per game, per Basketball-Reference.
And how is he doing that?
Exactly the way Thibs would want. 33% of Fox’s shots come at the rim, putting him in the 65th percentile in the league for his position (Per Cleaning The Glass). It gets better, though. Fox hits on 69% of his shots at the rim, good for the 98th percentile in the league for his position.
The man does exactly what Thibs wants on offense. He gets to the rim and scores it with a high level of consistency and uses that skill to help facilitate things for his teammates.
The defensive end is where there have to be question marks for Fox. NBA Math puts his DPS at a whopping -63.63. That’s rough. Their metric has him as a top 25 contributor on offense and a bottom 15 contributor on defense. The NY Knicks may not feel comfortable taking on a player with that discrepancy.
Also, now is the time to make the obligatory mention that Fox was a Kentucky Wildcat.
What Will It Cost the Knicks?
There are two things to consider with cost when it comes to Fox.
First is his contract. Fox begins his first year of a 5-year, 163 million dollar deal next season. He will be a solid chunk of the team’s cap space for the foreseeable future regardless of what goes back in the trade.
The second thing is what will it cost to get him.
My gut tells me the cost won’t be cheap.
Yes, the Kings are in the midst of the longest playoff drought in the league. Yes, De’Aaron Fox has been the point guard for the last four years of that. Yes, Fox has hinted on Twitter that he may not be happy there. Yes, Tyrese Halliburton has been a nice addition for them.
But here’s what’s also true: The Kings literally just signed his extension. If you are a smaller market team, you need to bank on superstar players to bring in fans. They have spent years building him up. If they are trading him now, it is going to cost their trade partner.
My gut says The Kings would want either Obi Toppin or Immanuel Quickley, Kevin Knox, and at least two unprotected firsts.
Fox is worth that haul on offense, but his defense concerns me. Fox would not immediately propel the Knicks to the next tier in the East, but he would make them a very scary young team that would be poised for a future breakout.