20 People who turned their backs on the New York Knicks

Brandon Jennings

Brandon Jennings’ stint in New York was short and not very sweet. The point guard signed a one-year, $5 million deal with the Knicks in free agency ahead of the 2016-17 season. 

Jennings landed in New York from Orlando, where Detroit traded him in a midseason deal. He averaged 7.0 points per game in 25 contests with the Magic and 6.8 points per game in the first half of the 2015-16 season with the Pistons. Before then, he had averaged at least 15 points per game since entering the league in 2009. 

His stint with the Knicks started full of positivity. It seemed to be a good fit for him, and fans were happy to see him there, too. Oh, how quickly things changed.  

Jennings’ lone season in NYC coincided with Phil Jackson’s last. Like other players on the Knicks, the guard wasn’t a fan of the triangle offense. It got to the point where, at the end of February, he told New York he wanted to be released to sign with a playoff team. 

Jennings closed out the regular season with the Wizards, averaging 3.5 points and 4.7 assists per game. Washington made it to the second round of the playoffs before coming up short to Boston in seven games. In the postseason, he averaged only 2.8 points and 1.8 assists per game. 

The Knicks brought Jennings on so he could be Derrick Rose’s backup, so it’s not as if he was ever supposed to play a big role. Even then, he still managed to be a disappointment. New York’s a tough place to play in, which Jackson made worse. Jennings didn’t do himself any favors, though. He thought he was too good to hang around for the whole season, so he ditched the Knicks.