New York Knicks: Four Things to watch for in the preseason

The New York Knicks still have lots of questions heading into the 2019-20 season after an eventful July. The front office signed nine new players to a team that won 17 games the year before. 

It is still extremely unclear as to how well or poorly the New York Knicks will finish this year, as it’s been a little while since they’ve had a roster turnover of this magnitude. There will definitely be some familiar faces like Mitchell Robinson and Kevin Knox, but also new ones like Julius Randle and Marcus Morris. Here are four things to watch for in the preseason that could potentially define this upcoming campaign for the Knickerbockers.

How does David Fizdale stagger frontcourt minutes? 

Head coach David Fizdale is going to have his work cut out for him, as this year’s squad is unquestionably deeper than years past. This is especially true in the frontcourt, as the Knicks have signed players who can be very versatile and fill multiple roles.

The starting duo of Mitchell Robinson and Julius Randle is likely set in stone, but the rest of the rotation is a mystery. Will Bobby Portis play as a stretch center similar to his time with the Washington Wizards? Is Marcus Morris going to spend most of his time at the three like his stint in Detriot, or will he play the role of a small ball four similar to his days with the Boston Celtics?

This doesn’t even take into account the roles of solid players like Kevin Knox and Taj Gibson, who both deserve minutes to take advantage of their respective abilities. While a concrete rotation likely won’t be clear in the preseason due to the reduced roles of starters, it’s important to watch how Fizdale plays the bigs on the court with each other.

Is there going to be more three-point shooting?

The New York Knicks finished last season 22nd in three-point attempts and 24th in makes, which certainly wasn’t helpful in terms of winning. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the case of quality over quantity either. The Knicks ended the season shooting 34 percent from downtown and 34.2 percent on corner threes that ranked 28th and 29th in the league, respectively.

Hopefully, this issue can be resolved with improved shooting from behind the arc by players such as Dennis Smith Jr. and Knox. Both young players have shown the ability to hit threes but have yet to drain them at an above-average percentage.

Another way this issue has been addressed is through free agency, as the Knicks have signed sharpshooters Wayne Ellington, Reggie Bullock, and to a lesser extent, Bobby Portis. It may take a little while to get a feel for Bullock. He is still recovering from offseason back surgery and will be re-evaluated in November.

Will ball movement be emphasized?

The Knicks regularly had trouble with ball movement at times last year. This often resulted in multiple isolation sets where the offense would go through numerous dry spells during games. As evidence of their issues in this area, the New York Knicks finished with the fewest assists per game among NBA teams in 2018-19.

This dilemma should hopefully end with full seasons from Dennis Smith Jr. and Frank Ntilikina, who both struggled with injuries last year. Additionally, the signing of Elfrid Payton should help as he finished the last season with an average of 7.6 assists per game. It also doesn’t hurt that he has chemistry with Julius Randle, as they were teammates on the New Orleans Pelicans.

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Mitchell Robinson can also help the team’s assist numbers, as his offensive game revolves around both the pick-and-roll and catching lobs. Further improvement from Robinson after a breakout rookie campaign could potentially benefit the team’s ball movement more than any point guard will.

How does R.J. Barrett fare against real NBA talent?

R.J. Barrett certainly had an up-and-down summer league performance, but he eventually showed why he was worthy of a top-three pick. However, it’s going to be interesting to see how well he plays against NBA starting-caliber players.

It’s important to see whether or not Barrett cracks the starting lineup in the preseason. His minutes could be indicative of his training camp performance and the trust that David Fizdale has in him to succeed. It’s not only critical to see if he starts, but that he can hold onto his starting spot throughout preseason play.

There will likely be lots of ups and downs for Barrett in his initial season, so it would be great to see him fit into a starting role this early in his career.

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The New York Knicks preseason is going to be fans’ first glimpse into how well the influx of offseason free agents mixes with the returning young core. If the chemistry forms sooner rather than later and the team plays hard every night, the playoffs might not be so far away. The journey starts on Monday night.