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New York Knicks: Tim Hardaway Jr. reacts to critical comments

By Nick Ziegler

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During the NBA Draft, the New York Knicks and Phil Jackson would pull off a trade to send Tim Hardaway Jr. to the Atlanta Hawks for rookie Jerian Grant.

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The trade of Hardaway was a bit of a shocker after just two seasons in New York. Hardaway played very well in his rookie season, but regressed last season. The Knicks expected Hardaway to make a jump in his second season after they traded away J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert, but that never happened.

Jackson had some strong comments to why he made the trade with the Hawks, as he said that Grant had more of the attributes that the Knicks wanted in a guard.

“Once I heard him say that, all hands on deck now,” Hardaway told Marc Berman of the New York Post. “Obviously as a basketball player, you take that to heart. So, it’s time to move on, get better, and when the time comes, the time comes. Right now, it’s all about Atlanta basketball.”

Hardaway never seemed to get comfortable in the Knicks’ triangle offense, and that could’ve been a main reason for his drop in production last season.

“The triangle is a tough offense to get used to,” Hardaway said to Berman. “You really have to be dedicated and mature to that end. We tried. We tried our best while we were there, but it’s a learning process. You learn and you get better each and every day. I think after a year, those guys will get used to it.”

After success right away in the NBA individually, last season could have been a bit of a wakeup call for Hardaway.

“There was a lot of negative but a lot of positive moments through last year. It really helps you grow as an individual and a ball player to realize that nothing comes easy in this league and you have to work for everything. So, it definitely made me mature a lot more as a basketball player and take advantage of this opportunity a lot more.”

Besides being traded, Hardaway was also involved in the possible venting of Carmelo Anthony about the Knicks drafting Kristaps Porzingis.

“I’m not sharing anything,” Hardaway said to Berman. “That’s between me and Melo, and it’s going to stay that way.”

Hardaway will be playing for a far better team next season, as the Hawks were the best team record wise in the regular season. They gave up a first-round pick for Hardaway, which means that they believe he will still be a good player in the NBA.

Next: New York Knicks draft grades

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