The hits just keep on comin’ when Leon Rose runs the NY Knicks.
I think the bulk of the fanbase thought that the Knicks’ draft was a bit underwhelming until it had some time to set in and people eventually came around to the moves that were made.
Then after day 1 of free agency, the Knicks essentially just replaced Reggie Bullock with Evan Fournier while bringing back the other 3 major impending free agents.
Basically saying that they were confident in last year’s roster and would love to prove the world wrong by ‘running it back’.
Day 2 of free agency came and went, with the only news being that the Knicks got punked by Kendrick Nunn.
Nunn's deal has a player option in Year 2. He turned down more money with the Knicks and other teams to join the Lakers. https://t.co/rQbY7PI0XJ
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 3, 2021
After that, I was starting to get curious about who the starting point guard would be, because as good as Derrick Rose is, I personally like him better in a reserve role where he doesn’t need to be ‘the guy’.
Are Obi Toppin’s days as a NY Knicks player numbered?
If the front office tells Coach Thibs that Rose is our starting point guard, we all know he will burn him into the ground…out of love of course.
So then, Day 3 of free agency starts off with a bang…
Four-time All-Star guard Kemba Walker has agreed to a contract buyout with the Oklahoma City Thunder, and upon clearing waivers, plans to sign with the New York Knicks, sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 4, 2021
I don’t think anyone still considered Kemba Walker as an option heading into the offseason because of the albatross of a contract he was on.
But, that all changed once the Thunder decided to buy him out, allowing Kemba to sign where ever his heart so desired.
After thinking the serious moves were finished, we get slammed with a huge bit of news this morning…
New York Knicks All-Star Julius Randle has agreed to a four-year, $117 million contract extension --- elevating his deal’s total value to five years and $140 million, his agents Aaron Mintz and Steven Heumann of @CAA_Basketball tell ESPN: https://t.co/4q7EfERHsw
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 5, 2021
King Julius is back!
Julius Randle signs his extension a year earlier than we all anticipated, essentially taking less money this season instead of betting on himself and getting an even bigger bag this time next year.
This move proves that Julius wants to be here in New York and is willing to make sure that the Knicks’ front office can still have the flexibility necessary when the time comes to make big-time roster decisions like signing or trading for a marquee superstar in the future.
It seems as if the Knicks are pretty much done making major moves and anything else from here would be considered relatively minor.
Now that the Knicks have committed the next 4 to 5 seasons into Julius Randle being their starting power forward, where does that leave young Obi Toppin?
As we know, Obi was originally drafted to replace Randle. Nobody, including the front office, saw the season Julius Randle had coming.
Due to Tom Thibodeau’s coaching philosophy, Julius Randle led the league in minutes played, and since Obi Toppin isn’t all that versatile as a player, he averaged just 11 minutes per game as a rookie.
I personally don’t see all that much changing moving forward either.
So that begs the question; is Obi Toppin going to be traded soon? My answer unfortunately is yes.
There’s no sense in keeping the 8th overall pick from the 2020 NBA Draft as a backup in a limited role, to no fault of his own.
I could understand if he just outright stunk, then sure, keep him around as a backup.
But we saw progression throughout the season, and possibly saw the best version of Obi Toppin during the NBA Playoffs.
I think the writing is on the wall, and Obi Toppin’s days as a Knick are numbered.
What are your thoughts, Knicks fans?