NY Knicks: 3 ways NY can still make it to the NBA Finals

The NY Knicks need to switch up the starting lineup for good

While I will always speak highly of positions two through five in what seems to be the nightly starting lineup, there definitely needs to be a change in regard to who starts at the point guard position.

While I have defended Elfrid Payton throughout the course of the season and have had his back through his struggles knowing he’s a solid NBA player, he should not be getting any amount of minutes right now.

(Editor’s Note: This was written before the changes made for Games 3 & 4)

We’ve been calling for a change to be made for a while now.

The playoffs are not a time to be experimenting or pushing a player to get out of his slump. It’s about playing your best players whenever you can.

Tom Thibodeau clearly has lost faith in him as he played less than 10 minutes against the Atlanta Hawks this past Sunday.

While that can seem meaningless, those few minutes could end up make or breaking the game and Trae Young needs to be guarded by someone capable of playing good defense who can also expose Young’s poor defensive abilities.

This applies to other point guards as well.

While Payton is serviceable at his best, he is nowhere near that level right now and someone else should be taking his minutes.

With Derrick Rose playing 37 minutes a game in game one and rookie Immanuel Quickley seemingly playing well alongside Rose, maybe it’s time to consider starting Frank Ntilikina.

While Frank was unable to guard Trae Young when Young hit that game winner in game one, it’s hard to ask that much of him due to him being on the bench that entire game.

If they play him about 10 minutes a game, he could very well give you that defense boost needed while Rose and IQ are resting on the bench.