New York Knicks Grades For First Quarter Of Season
Center
Dec 4, 2014; New York, NY, USA; New York Knicks power forward Amar
SAMUEL DALEMBERT. B-. Samuel Dalembert has done exactly what the Knicks had expected from him; protect the rim, play defense and rebound. The problem is, he can’t do it for long stretches of time, and he isn’t a strong fit offensively. But he has been doing what he can, and cannot be faulted for the deficiencies of the rest of his teammates. Outside of his rookie year, he is putting up career lows across the board, something that is a little disappointing.. .
COLE ALDRICH. Inc.. Cole Aldrich has been stuck at the end of the bench as much as any player on the team and it is weird that he is. He brings what none of the other big men on the team bring outside of Dalembert; defense and rebounding. Expect to see his minutes increase as the season wears on, as the Knicks need to have another player in the middle other than Dalembert that can protect the paint and rebound.. .
A. Amar’e Stoudemire is the MVP of the Knicks through the first quarter of the season. Always a health concern because of his knees, he has missed only one game thus far for maintenance. When he has been on the floor, he has flashed the Phoenix Suns and first season Knick STAT, as he has been extremely efficient offensively and leads the team in rebounding. He is playing only 25.4 minutes per game, but is averaging 12.8 points and team-high 7.8 rebounds per game with 1.1 assists. Those are outstanding numbers for a player essentially in a big man rotation at power forward and center. He backs up his words with his play, and is a quintessential team player in the sense he will do whatever it takes to win, no matter the role he is given.. . . AMAR'E STOUDEMIRE
In a scheme like the Knicks are attempting to run, they just do not have the resources at center to run it correctly. Much like the shooting guards, there are players that do well on one side of the court, but not the other. Imagine Samuel Dalembert’s rim protecting combined with Stoudemire’s offensive game in one player, instead of having to play them each on the court. It would solve a lot of the problems the Knicks have, and is just another example of the flaws this roster has. Cole Aldrich showed last year he could perform if given a chance, and he should receive that.