Just as it seemed the point guard position for the New York Knicks looked promising, Kemba Walker has been benched.
Walker, who may have been rightfully demoted, losing his starting job this early to be replaced by Alec Burks, was not on my 2021-22 Knicks bingo card.
Now, I could have seen Derrick Rose becoming the starter if he played himself into the role as he did in the 2021 playoffs against the Atlanta Hawks, but Alec Burks replacing him is a shock.
This is no knock against Burks, however. Burks leads the Knicks in 3 Point Percentage at 45% while being critical in many Knick wins. It’s more that I do not see Burks as a point guard.
Coach Thibodeau is going with Burks, though over guys such as Rose or second-year standout Immanuel Quickley. Thibs likes experienced players, and Rose is clearly in a great spot coming off the bench, so this does make some sense.
Now the Knicks have long-term replacements for the starting point guard this season, whether it is a guy currently on the Knicks or a buyout candidate like John Wall, who’s been linked to NY recently.
I do not see Wall joining the Knicks at all, however. The Knicks will not trade for that contract, and if Wall gets bought out of his contract with the Houston Rockets, he will probably join a team that has a better chance of winning the NBA Finals than the Knicks.
This really leaves the trio of Alec Burks, Immanuel Quickley, or Derrick Rose to become the Knicks’ full-time starting point guard for the remainder of the season.
Each of these three guys have their own abilities making them good options but also maybe not the ideal starting point guard. One thing can be said though, none of these guys have been as inefficient as Kemba Walker has been.
The other option is the Knicks run a point guard-by-committee style, where they switch between Burks, Rose, and Quickley based on who works best in certain matchups.
Lastly, for all the Deuce McBride fans out there, it’s not happening. Thibs does not give rookies big minutes, and McBride is not ready yet. Anyway, let’s get into it.
New York Knicks Replacement #1: Alec Burks
I figured it makes sense to start with the new starting point guard of the Knicks for at least the time being.
Let’s start with the positives, as I’ve been a massive fan of Burks’ game for years and knew the Knicks made the right move signing him in 2020 and then re-signing him in 2021.
Alec Burks re-signed with the Knicks for 3 years/30 million. For reference, Duncan Robinson got 5 years/90 Million from the Miami Heat. WOW.
This is not me saying Robinson is overpaid, Davis Bertans got the same deal from the Washington Wizards in 2020 free agency, and Joe Harris received 4 years/75 million from the Brooklyn Nets.
Shooters get paid nowadays. Burks, who shoots the second best, only behind Harris by 1.5% is easily the best defender and shot creator out of these four players.
Burks is paid the least amount of money to do more on the court than any of these other three, while he’s either a better shooter than two of them.
The Knicks’ new starting point guard has also been their go-to clutch performer since last season and has only gotten better at it. Burks is the Knicks King of Clutch, and it is well deserved.
Now there are definitely concerns with Burks as the new starting point guard of the Knicks. I’ve always seen Burks as more of a wing than a point guard. He is not an especially good playmaker.
Julius Randle, RJ Barrett, and Evan Fournier are all above average at playmaking for their positions which makes up for Burks, however, there is no clear floor general in the Knicks starting five.
Most Thibodeau-coached teams have a floor general, so this could raise concerns. However, the Knicks have been successful with Burks on the court, and he is the best defender out of the three options.
New York Knicks Replacement #2: Derrick Rose
Part of me thought it would be possible that the Kemba Walker experiment would not work out. I figured Derrick Rose would take over as the starting point guard if it did not work.
Now out of the three-point guard options, Rose is definitely the most true point guard option, however, his production off the bench has been so helpful and has been key to the success of the Knicks’ bench.
The Knicks bench is incredibly talented, and they work very well together. It is clear that Rose’s ability to run the floor helps the bench unit drastically, so keeping rose on the bench is understandable.
I personally like Rose coming off the bench for New York. Rose is 33 years old and has the most famous injury history out of every NBA player ever. In 2014, you could not avoid internet memes about Rose constantly getting injured.
Playing Rose a max of 25 minutes per night works for me, and it works for the Knicks, as when he is in he changes the complexion of the game. The Knicks need Rose in the playoffs, and that was made clear.
Rose is the best point guard on the roster, and it’s hard to argue otherwise. Rose should start if the Knicks make the playoffs, which is likely. No need to burn him out, as I said Thibs did to Julius Randle last playoffs.
New York Knicks Replacement #3: Immanuel Quickley
Immanuel Quickley should definitely be the Knicks’ starting point guard for the rest of the season. As I said, I love Alec Burks, he’s great, but Quickley has to be the guy.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, the Knicks are not built to contend with the current top NBA teams. They are built for the future. RJ Barrett is 21, Quickley is 22, Obi Toppin, Jericho Sims, and Mitchell Robinson are all 23. Also, Randle is 27. It’s not like he’s old or anything.
The Knicks are also chock full of draft picks, with the second most draft capital over the next five years only behind the OKC Thunder. Quickley is good enough to start, and it will be helpful to see if he has the tools to be the point guard of the future for NY.
Quickley has shown the confidence that one needs to be in such a role while playing in the Mecca, and he has every reason to be confident. Every time Quickley as much as breathes, for some reason, it is exciting.
IQ averages 9 points, 2.5 assists, and 2 rebounds in 19 minutes per game. Those stats do not jump out at you, but shooting a 37% clip from deep is always impressive, especially when the majority of your threes are pull-up attempts.
Similar to Burks, Quickley is not a floor general, however, he can play the point guard position and has shown decent pass vision.
IQ also averages 17 points and 5 assists per 36 minutes, which is good enough to be a starting point guard today, and certainly would be impressive for a second-year player.
Giving Quickley the keys to running the offense at a young age with a team of decent playmakers surrounding him work out in his favor and will give him the experience of being a starting point guard on a successful team.
I believe heavily that the best experience a player can have is experience. That essentially means if you want a player to get better, play them. The only way to learn how to deal with NBA defense is to go up against it at the highest level.
It won’t always be pretty, but Quickley is good enough to take on this role and has been one of the best players on the team. He is a true guard, more than Alec Burks, and should become the Knicks starting point guard for the rest of the season, and possibly beyond that.