New York Knicks: Jimmer Fredette Not What Knicks Need

The New York Knicks made some waves on Halloween when they used the No. 2 overall selection in the 2015 NBA D-League Draft to take former Sacramento Kings, Chicago Bulls and New Orleans Pelicans guard Jimmer Fredette.

Fredette was in camp with the San Antonio Spurs this fall before he was waived Oct. 21 and opted to try his hand in the D-League for the first time in his fifth pro season.

He was the 10th overall pick out of BYU in the 2011 NBA Draft and was immediately traded by the Milwaukee Bucks to the Kings, where he languished for 2½ seasons before being waived in February 2014.

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He finished that season with the Bulls and then signed over the summer with the Pelicans, where he saw action in just 50 games and just 10.2 minutes a night.

Known primarily as a shooter, Fredette made just 38 percent overall with the Pelicans in 2014-15 and was just 9-for-48 (18.8 percent) from 3-point range.

If Fredette has a future as an NBA player, it will likely be as a long-range shooting specialist, so those numbers didn’t reflect well.

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In two preseason outings with the Spurs, Fredette played 26 minutes and was just 2-for-10 overall and 0-for-3 from deep.

If the Knicks have exhibited a need during their 2-4 start, it is for shooting—specifically a player or two who can catch and shoot.

Per NBA stats tracking, New York is 26th in the NBA, making only 33.1 percent of its catch-and-shoot attempts. The Knicks are 25th in catch-and-shoot three-pointers, making 30.2 percent.

So enter Jimmer?

That depends on which one. The guy who split his 2013-14 season between the Kings and the Bulls was a master of the catch-and-shoot, knocking down 18-of-35 three-point attempts in that situation (51.4 percent) and matching 22-of-47 overall on catch-and-shoot deliveries.

But 2014-15 Jimmer couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn on catch-and-shoot attempts—7-for-32 (21.9 percent) from long distance and 10-for-35 (28.5 percent) overall.

If Fredette can’t function as a shooting specialist, then he doesn’t really have a role in the NBA. He averages just 3.7 assists per 36 minutes to go with 2.5 turnovers, hardly an effective ratio for a point guard.

And he’s hardly what you’d call a plus defender. Per basketball-reference.com, he has a career offensive rating of 102 to go with a defensive rating of 113, meaning that he’s giving it away much faster than he can get it.

In some ways, Fredette has become a Tim Tebow-type character in the NBA, with a rabid corps of fans who don’t want to see the shortcomings of their hero.

And part of that is fueled by Fredette’s own stubbornness, at least according to a report by Michael Lee of Yahoo Sports.

“Jimmer thinks everybody is stupid,” said an NBA assistant coach who worked with Fredette. “He thinks everybody needs to come and just turn over their offense and let him shoot it anytime he wants. That’s not how the league works.”

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Things didn’t work in San Antonio, either, and that assistant coach believes he has an inkling why.

“He won’t adjust his game for it,” the coach said. “He’ll tell you, ‘This is what I did at BYU.’ Well, BYU, that’s a long time ago.”

Still, another former coach of Fredette’s thinks he can find inspiration in another college scoring star who was able to—after some fits and starts—make the adjustment to a new role, J.J. Redick, who struggled with the Orlando Magic for four seasons before finally figuring out that he wasn’t at Duke anymore.

“J.J. is a good example for him,” another of Fredette’s coaches said. “He had done a lot of prolific scoring in college, but came in and eventually figured out the NBA. He changed his body. He learned the league. He’s had a hell of a career, but it wasn’t easy for him early on.”

Would the Knicks be able to use Fredette? Yes, if he’s a player ready to embrace a role and run with it. But if Fredette continues to cling to the good old days when he just got the ball and everyone else got the heck out of his way?

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That’s not a Jimmer Fredette that can help the Knicks … or any other NBA team.