Sometimes, the moves you don’t make are as impactful as the ones you do. The New York Knicks’ likely failed pursuit Ben Simmons is one of these moves.
During a recent episode of The Putback, SNY’s Ian Begley discussed the team’s chances of signing the 29-year-old:
“They have interest, other teams have interest, and they have one spot unless they make a trade to open up another. So it seems to me you are looking at Landry Shamet or a Ben Simmons-type player. That is why I would probably take the field. Are the Knicks the favorite? I do not think so.”
Fans should cling to this update like it’s their favorite childhood stuffed animal, or security blanky. Though the Knicks appear to be in the market for a ball-handler and defense, Simmons is a decidedly bad fit on the current roster.
Signing Ben Simmons could hurt other Knicks players
At his absolute peak, the 6’10” Australian is a fierce and versatile defender who can table-set for others on offense, especially in transition. Related: We are years removed from witnessing peak Ben Simmons.
More than that, even at his best, he infringes upon the play of two mission-critical Knicks: Josh Hart, and Mitchell Robinson.
Playing Simmons and Robinson together is a non-starter. It can’t be done. Both are total non-spacers. With Simmons coming off the bench, New York would have to start Robinson just to stagger them.
Head coach Mike Brown might go ahead and play Mitch alongside Karl-Anthony Towns to begin games anyway. At least right now, though, it’s a choice. The Knicks have other lineup options worth exploring. Signing Simmons fires those alternatives into the sun.
Figuring out how he coexists off the same bench, even inside the same rotation, as Hart is no great shakes, either. While Hart will take threes, he is notoriously hesitant, and not reliably efficient. Defenses already have no qualms guarding him with a big. They may not need to guard him at all when he’s sharing the floor with Simmons.
Both players are, for the most part, looking to attack identical spaces. Hart sees his rim-pressure rate blown to smithereens, dropping from 46.5 percent to 24.5 percent, when he plays with Robinson. Having him spend any at all alongside Simmons would lead to the same issue.
Adding Simmons could also cost the Knicks a player
Late-summer free-agency signings don’t typically come with collateral damage. This one could.
The Knicks only have room for one veteran minimum’s deal, and Landry Shamet is the favorite to land it. They are apparently open to creating a second veteran minimum’s spot, but failing a bigger-time trade that cuts salary, doing so will almost assuredly cost them Tyler Kolek or Pacome Dadiet.
Some may not consider this a big deal. Neither Kolek nor Dadiet is expected to be part of Brown’s rotation. That doesn’t make unloading them a smart move. They are both under team-friendly, cost-controlled contracts for multiple years, and there’s still a chance one or both turn into someone who eventually contributes.
Punting on either low-risk, lower-cost opportunity just to add someone who peaks as the eighth or ninth man is patently bananas. The Knicks are almost definitely better off without Simmons no matter what. They’re certainly better off without him if this is the path they must travel down to get him.