The New York Knicks will need to make sure the starters are playing at peak performance, but the bench, most notably Lance Thomas and Justin Holiday, will be key for success.
After cuts moved New York to a 15-man roster and with the regular season just 24 hours away, the New York Knicks, still looking to figure out the chemistry and balance with a returning Derrick Rose to the starting lineup, are looking to break a three-year streak where they found themselves on the outside of the playoff picture.
One part of breaking that streak will be the “star power” that exists within the starting lineup.
Rose, Joakim Noah, and Carmelo Anthony are all former All-Star starters; Kristaps Porzingis is high on the list of young players expected to make a leap and Courtney Lee is a balanced shooting guard who can impact the game on both sides of the ball. It’s not a bad lineup on paper.
However, the Knicks will have to balance that out with strong bench players who can fill multiple roles and balance the Knicks out. We already talked in depth about Brandon Jennings, who’ll serve the role of the team’s sixth man and operate as a change-up at the position.
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That center position should be won by Willy Hernangomez soon, but it’ll start with Kyle O’Quinn.
The two other players expected to serve off the bench? Lance Thomas and Justin Holiday. Both will have to provide performances that could help the New York Knicks break that lottery streak.
Holiday and Thomas are one in the same. Both players undrafted. Both found themselves floating around the league. Both came to the Knicks as “pieces” to a trade for the Knicks — Thomas to acquire future cap space, Holiday as an ancillary piece in the Rose trade.
Both, however, are expected to provide two things — defense and floor spacing.
For Holiday, the measurables stand out. At 6-foot-6 with a wingspan of 7 feet, Holiday looks like a decent defender and is in spurts. He isn’t, however, a lockdown defender.
I imagine his best defense will be with guys like Lee and Noah on the floor — two smarter defenders who can also help hide any mistakes on the floor.
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As for Thomas, he isn’t the better athlete, but rather, a smarter defender. The advanced metrics doesn’t consider Thomas a good defender, but at times he was New York’s best on-ball defender last season.
He was perfect alongside Anthony as a 3-4 pairing, allowing Anthony to take the worst of the two opposing forwards.
It’s paramount for both players to be positive defenders, simply because the Knicks lack defenders at those positions. Anthony has always been a poor defensive player on the perimeter and after Courtney Lee — 31-year-old Courtney Lee — the Knicks don’t have much perimeter defense.
Both Holiday and Thomas can provide that, and can’t fall off a bit this upcoming season.
The three-point shooting is even shakier for the duo.
Just a quick glance at the shooting percentages and you’ll be fine with their production. Thomas knocked down 40 percent last season, Holiday hit 34 percent. However, neither did it with the volume you would prefer.
Thomas, after shooting just 23 threes in his previous four seasons, took 109 of them and made 44. Holiday finished his second season with at least 100 threes attempted and made 36 of them.
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Corner threes and catch-and-shoot threes are the most important for both players. With Rose, Anthony, Noah and Porzingis on offense, you don’t need to create much. You make the right play, find a corner and launch when you’re open.
Holiday knocked down 36 percent of his catch-and-shoot threes, while Thomas had finished second on the team last season with 41 percent.
You always want more production — someone who can hit better than 37 percent of his threes with 200, even 300 attempts is an ideal knockdown shooter. However, consistency is key.
If both Holiday and Thomas can be 40 percent shooters from three and do it on low volume, that’s better than worse shooters on a higher volume. I’m also mildly interested in how Jennings and Anthony can get open shots for both guys.
New York’s season is depending on their starters. However, that bench will be a key factor for New York and maintaining any success they have this season.
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Jennings will be there, the center combo will be value to save their big men, but Holiday and Thomas will have additional pressure on both sides of the ball, as “3-and-D” players who can help cover the weaknesses of some of New York’s key offensive players.