emmanuel mudiay

New York Knicks: How will David Fizdale distribute playing time in 2019?

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New York Knicks, Kevin Knox, RJ Barrett

The New York Knicks are beyond the point of babysitting. They’ve signed multiple pricey free agents and will be looking to utilize their talent instead of prioritizing the development of their youth.

The 2018 season was used as such — allowing options like Kevin Knox, Allonzo Trier, Mitchell Robinson, Damyean Dotson and more to rack up minutes with no consequences of failure. This upcoming season will be different. The front office wont hold back from playing the best players and we have to be ready to see options like Knox struggle to get on the court.

While we saw good things from Knox this past Summer League, the struggles will emerge again as they did last season. Whether he can fight through them or not is the question. However, just because the Knicks brought in players like Julius Randle and Marcus Morris doesn’t mean they can’t rotate frequently to ensure their players are gaining essential experience.

Building chemistry will also be a hurdle they must face head-on. Meshing rookies and youth with veterans isn’t always smooth, it will take playing time together to really help the team develop a cohesiveness.

I anticipate head coach David Fizdale favoring the players with the most potential at this point. He will undoubtedly start Randle, Morris, Robinson, and Dennis Smith Jr. The final slot could be handed to Knox, Dotson, Trier, Barrett…

Barrett, a 6-foot-7 winger, will earn his fair share of minutes, but his potential actually poses a problem for Fizdale who will have to floor an everyday lineup with a concentration of talent at power forward. Fizdale has been criticized in the past for his lineups — he consistently played Emmanuel Mudiay over Frank Ntilikina who absolutely ‘needed’ playing time.

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Finding a balance for Barrett, Robinson, Knox, Trier, Smith Jr., Ignas Brazdeikis, and veterans Elfrid Payton, Taj Gibson, Morris, Randle, and Bobby Portis will be difficult. They also have Wayne Ellington, a three-point sharpshooter.

The reality of the situation is that the Knicks could very well be a .500 team if they rely on the veterans. However, it’s still important that the youth players earn plenty of time on the court.

Should the New York Knicks keep Emmanuel Mudiay?

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New York Knicks point guard, Emmanuel Mudiay.

The New York Knicks have a few tough decisions to make this upcoming offseason as the 2019 NBA Draft looms and the player of choice is clearly Duke’s, RJ Barrett. However, finding a serviceable point guard in free agency will be a priority, as Dennis Smith Jr. is good but not great.

A player in flux is Emmanuel Mudiay, who had a solid 2018 season averaging 14.8 PPG, shooting 44.6% and 32.9% from downtown. These were all career-highs for the former first-round pick in 2015.

He ultimately was the most consistent starter on a bad Knicks team, given the lack of veteran leadership and the abundance of youth. He was their best player at times, but that’s just a testament the Knicks’ 17-65 record. There’s no question the organization needs to bring in several high-profile players to turn the tables on a struggling team.

The New York Knicks might be better off letting Mudiay walk:

I don’t know if the fan-base can take much more of this misery. Unfortunately for the Knicks, Mudiay’s price-tag will elevate in his fifth season. The $4.2 million he earned last year will not get the job done again, so New York has to make the decision to either let him walk or bring him back as a reserve option. I can’t imagine they will bring him back as a starter with players like Kyrie Irving and Kemba Walker available in the free agency.

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The 2019 offseason will be about maintaining as much cap space as possible in hopes of landing a max-contract player like Kevin Durant. A young team featuring Mitchell Robinson, Allonzo Trier, Smith Jr., Kevin Knox, and Damyeon Dotson, will draw interest to veterans looking to lead their own team into the abyss.

The talent on the roster is a bit underdeveloped, but a long and grueling 2018 season has surely given them the grit needed to win in the future. The hope is that bigger and better players feel the same way.