This past season, fans saw players like Immanuel Quickley and Jalen Brunson become two of arguably the three best players on the Knicks. Now, heading into 2023-24, we could see a few players become much better than they were in previous years.
These three players are all below 25 and are set to continue progressing into better players. The development of these players will be critical to the Knicks’ success in not only 2023-24 but for the foreseeable future.
3 Knicks players who could have breakout seasons in 2023-24
3. PG Miles McBride
While he may not break out into a conventional star, there’s reasonable hope that Miles McBride will finally develop a decent offensive game. If this happens, the Knicks could potentially have one of the best bench defenses in the entire league. A defensive trio of McBride, Quickley, and Hart is ridiculous.
Last season, McBride averaged 3.5 points, 0.8 rebounds, and 1.1 assists per game while shooting 35.8% from the field and 29.9% from beyond the arc on 2.1 attempts. These offensive numbers show the biggest reason he hasn’t been a consistent part of the Knicks’ rotation.
Fans know McBride is an incredible defensive player, but his offense is a genuine problem. McBride has a true shooting percentage of 44.8% through his first two seasons. Considering that the league average for this stat is 58.1%, he must improve.
If he becomes an average offensive player, the Knicks will have a key young player off the bench. On the other hand, if they don’t wish to play him often, Leon Rose could likely ship McBride off for assets.
2. SG Quentin Grimes
Throughout his first two seasons, Quentin Grimes has shown flashes of stardom. While most know him for his 3-and-D play at the wing, Grimes has shown so much more than that in his young career. His role may limit how often he can show these skills, but those skills are there.
For example, while Grimes is known for being a career 38.4% three-point shooter on good volume, he’s also an incredible finisher. Last season, Grimes finished at the rim at a 74.5% clip. While the rate at which he takes these shots is not too high, it’s still impressive. In addition to this, Grimes has also shown some surprisingly good playmaking instincts.
His average of 2.1 assists per game may not be mind-boggling, but when you watch him play, Grimes can occasionally throw some very impressive passes. It will be interesting to see if Tom Thibodeau runs more sets with Grimes as the primary ball-handler in 2023-24.
Whether he becomes a star or just a great role player, expect to see more improvements out of the 23-year-old next season. Hopefully, Thibs will allow Grimes to expand his game past being a catch-and-shoot player. Regardless, fans know he will be effective on both sides of the ball.
1. SF RJ Barrett
There may have been flashes of good play, especially in the postseason, but all fans can agree that 2022-23 was not great for RJ Barrett. His inconsistencies on both sides of the ball made him a near liability sometimes, making it difficult to watch games. Despite this, fans should still be high on Barrett’s ceiling and the player he could be going into 2023-24.
Last season, Barrett averaged 19.6 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game, shooting 43.4% from the field and 31.0% from deep on 5.3 attempts. While Barrett did make a notable improvement in finishing at the rim, that’s about the only area that looked better than it did in prior years. In 2021-22, Barrett shot 59.6% at the rim and 44.2% from two-point range, but in 2022-23, Barrett shot a much improved 64.2% at the rim and 49.5% from two.
Despite this improvement at the rim, Barrett saw a decline in points, rebounds, assists, and three-point percentage. While things around him certainly weren’t perfect, he still needed to play better than he did in 2021-22. However, after a solid playoff run, fans are as optimistic as ever that Barrett could make the leap next season.
Hopefully, entering year five, Barrett finally sees marginal improvement. Fans would like to see him become the All-Star he was destined to be, but fans would be happy at this point if Barrett could become a consistent third option.
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