Tyler Kolek has enjoyed a playing-time boost ever since Jose Alvarado went down with a left ankle sprain. If this uptick is going to continue, he now has to beat out Alvarado himself or Miles McBride to make it happen.
After missing four straight games, Grand Theft Alvarado is back at practice. The New York Knicks have officially upgraded him to “questionable” on their injury report.
Nobody stands to be more impacted by this progression than Kolek. He racked up two DNPs to open the season, but has averaged over 14 minutes per game with Alvarado in the rotation.
And yet, New York’s third-year guard has turned quite a few heads with his playmaking and, most critically, ball control. The improvement is so stark the Knicks may have no choice but to keep him in the rotation.
Tyler Kolek is making major strides the Knicks offense needs
Giveaways have ranked among Kolek’s biggest warts since entering the league. Through his first two seasons, Kolek turned the ball over on 17.3 percent of his possessions. Among 150 players who logged at least as many minutes over this time, that ranks as the 14th-highest turnover rate on the docket.
A tighter handle, stronger frame and higher-quality decision-making have flipped the script to start this season. Kolek has dished out 25 dimes against just two turnovers. He has also assisted on 53.2 percent of the team’s baskets when in the game—the absolute highest mark in the league among anyone who’s made more than one appearance.
As talented as the Knicks are on offense, they still need another ball-handler and playmaker, particularly one who won’t crumble against the NBA’s heightened defensive pressure. That need might be even more urgent than it’s supposed to be. New York won’t hover around the bottom 10 in offensive efficiency forever, but its struggles go beyond just making more shots.
The burden on Jalen Brunson’s shoulders right now remains astronomical. The Knicks have tried to funnel more on-ball reps toward Karl-Anthony Towns, but multiple games’ worth of foul trouble have capped his impact. OG Anunoby is getting more time with the rock in his hands, but the results don’t inspire much confidence.
Playing Kolek adds more ball-handling and decision-making to the lineup. But the Knicks have other factors to consider before guaranteeing him minutes when the backcourt rotation is at full strength.
Don’t count on Tyler Kolek remaining part of the rotation
Head coach Mike Brown has made it clear he will ride the veterans until New York emerges from its early-season rut. Only then, or in the face of injury, will he dole out reps to developmental projects like Kolek, Mohamed Diawara, and Pacome Dadiet.
Unlike the other two, Kolek already has meaningful minutes under his belt. The past few games were effectively his audition. And the results are, in all likelihood, not good enough.
Better ball control and otherworldly passing still aren’t partnered with a more consistent scoring arsenal. Kolek is shooting just 33.3 percent on threes and 20 percent on twos. Though he’s a better standstill markman than many realize, his scoring aggression has never reached the level required to run second units.
That remains true now. The Knicks are performing like a bottom-seven offense when Kolek plays without Brunson. And that’s with over 80 percent of those minutes coming alongside Towns.
Imagine how little defenses will care about defending screening actions involving Kolek and Drummond. The former needs to improve a great deal as a shooter and scorer to adequately open up the floor independent of the Knicks’ stars.
Unless that changes, Brown will lean toward three-and-D stylings of Alvarado and McBride. That doesn’t mean Kolek will never play. Brown generally does a good job finding minutes for everyone as the season goes on. But for Kolek to be a mainstay, he’ll have to prove his most recent play only scratched at the surface of what he can actually do.
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