NY Knicks: Immanuel Quickley’s fit with upgraded guards
I’m going to avoid discussing the trade targets, the Damian Lillards and Bradley Beals, because that guts the roster and probably takes Quickley off of the team.
Still, there a ton of other very potential backcourt upgrades that will only cost $.
If we want to look at the vague blueprint of “Realistically upgrading the NY Knicks”, one of the most unanimous, commonly discussed moves is to replace Elfrid Payton’s role with an upgrade.
Even with Payton’s minutes diminished toward the end of the season and benching in the playoffs, the answer isn’t as simple as start Derrick Rose and play him 35 minutes a game. That’s not happening.
I do believe this team and Derrick Rose will get a new contract done, and whether or not he’s the starter or the 6th man, I’d expect him to be closer to the 25 minutes per game mark.
If the Knicks were to bring one of the top free-agent guards: Lonzo Ball, Norman Powell, Spencer Dinwiddie, Kyle Lowry, Dennis Schroder, one of those players would easily soak up another 25-30 minutes per game.
As a hypothetical, let’s say the starting backcourt is Lowry and Barrett with Rose and Quickley coming off of the bench. Perhaps the Knicks also draft a guard with one of their two picks.
Can Quickley carve out a bigger role on that team? What if they add a forward as well, someone like Evan Fournier?
It may seem crowded, but there is room for Quickley to take on more responsibility and have his role increase. It’s going to require more trust from Tom Thibodeau.
The blueprint here is actually somewhat straightforward: Immanuel Quickley takes over Alec Burks’ role.