New York Knicks: 5 Things To Watch For During Summer League
Jul 14, 2013; Las Vegas, NV, USA; The New York Nicks and the Washington Wizards participate in pregame warmups before an NBA Summer League game inside the Cox Pavillion. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports
Saturday afternoon will be the first time we get to see some of the New York Knicks younger players take the court, as they will begin their Summer League season in Las Vegas against the San Antonio Spurs. It is a chance for the rookies to get their feet wet at the NBA level, while there will also be some veterans and older players fighting for spots on the team for training camp and the regular season.
For the Knicks though, there will be a little more things to pay attention to. For a team that finished the 2014-15 as poorly as the Knicks did, there are a lot of things to work on. While everything in the Summer League has to be taken with a grain of salt, and not much stock can usually be put into it, there are some things you would like to see.
The Knicks are obviously no different from any other NBA team, and there will be a couple of things to keep an eye on and reasons to tune into what is glorified pickup games. Here are five things to keep an eye on for the Knicks during the NBA Summer league.
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Will Kristaps Play?
There has been plenty of rumors surrounding the fourth overall pick from the 2015 NBA Draft about if he will be suiting up with the Knicks are not. Kristaps Porzingis is dealing with some hip soreness, and his brother said that his status for the summer league was up the air.
Porzingis injured his hip during the pre draft workout process, supposedly during his workout with the Knicks. It has kept him off the court in recent weeks, but head coach Derek Fisher says that he is trending towards playing Saturday.
For Porzingis, this will be a huge step in the right direction. While Summer League results are hard to look into, for a guy like Porzingis a strong performance can go a long way. The Knicks have received plenty of scrutiny for selecting the 7-feet-3 inch Latvian, but he has as much, if not more, upside than anyone in the draft. The Summer League will give him a chance to get some of the pressure off of him, as it is the perfect setting and playing style to fit his game.
He is extremely athletic for a player his size, and could really stand out in a setting like this. Players his size aren’t supposed to be able to knock down jumpers and coming off screens like a guard, but that is exactly what Porzingis will deliver. The sooner he can show what he is capable of, the sooner he can quite some of his critics. The Summer League will be a good first step in doing so if he is able to suit up.
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