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NY Knicks: 3 negative takeaways from the 2021-22 season

By James Ryder

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 18: Julius Randle #30 of the New York Knicks looks on during a break in the action during the fourth quarter of the game against the Washington Wizards at Madison Square Garden on March 18, 2022 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Dustin Satloff/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 18: Julius Randle #30 of the New York Knicks looks on during a break in the action during the fourth quarter of the game against the Washington Wizards at Madison Square Garden on March 18, 2022 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Dustin Satloff/Getty Images) /
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New York Knicks. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images) /

The 2021-22 New York Knicks were astonishingly inconsistent

No, I don’t mean that the Knicks’ play was inconsistent from a competitive standpoint. They were basically a disaster during every stretch of the year, particularly in the third and fourth quarters.

Instead, I think inconsistency is the word that most defines New York’s season because on every front aside from losing, there were little to no signs of stability.

Clearly, there was a huge lack of consistency between Randle and Thibodeau. But they are far from the only Knicks personnel who played such a role.

An exciting five-game stretch in late October and early November was followed by two months of a colossal struggle for RJ Barrett, who then played the best three months of his career to start the new year.

Burks, Immanuel Quickley, and Evan Fournier all finished strong as well but were major liabilities on offense most of the season.

Between injuries to Derrick Rose, Nerlens Noel, Mitchell Robinson, and Kemba Walker, there was often a lot of turnover in New York’s lineups. And even when healthy, Noel and Walker were so horrendous that they at one point or another were benched in favor of other players.

Robinson was a hobbled mess the first couple of dozen games trying to balance his new weight gain and recovery from last year’s ankle injury.

And then there was the inconsistency in minutes distributed to the reserves. Cam Reddish was traded for a first-round pick and barely given the time of day. Obi Toppin played anywhere from 8 to 18 minutes a game, usually somewhere in the middle.

Burks was playing heavy minutes at point guard while Quickley barely got the ball in his hands at times. Miles McBride was seen more in Knicks PR tweets about being called up and down between the NBA and G League than he was seen on the actual court.

Very rarely was this team all clicking at the same time, both from a health and production standpoint. There are frankly no excuses for most of these players for the season they had.

The only guys who stood out as constant positives were Toppin, Quentin Grimes, and Taj Gibson. Overall, this season was just a mess.

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