New York Knicks: Shooting Guard Options in Free Agency

The New York Knicks have no shortage of needs in the wake of a 17-65 season and a roster wafer thin on talent and depth. As free agency is set to kick off at midnight eastern time on Wednesday, New York figures to be major players. They are linked to multiple free agents—mostly in the middle tier—and will have their chance to make their case as a desired destination and most importantly one of winning.

The team has presumably filled a critical void at the point guard position with the draft day trade for Jerian Grant, the 19^th pick. The 6’5’’ Grant’s supreme playmaking skills were on full display in a high-octane Notre Dame offense. The Knicks are void of the sort of shooters the Irish surrounded Grant with that allowed him to consistently punish collapsing defenses.

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The Knicks will be actively targeting multiple big men to rebuild a front line lacking in overall talent depth. Next on their checklist will likely be snagging a shooting guard to replace Tim Hardaway Jr., who was sent to the Atlanta Hawks for Grant. The team will have north of $28 million in cap space to fill, and barring a major free agent acquisition, they could use it on a shooting guard and the big man they covet. That number could change if New York decides to exercise a qualifying offer to bring back Alexey Shved.

San Antonio Spurs sharpshooting guard Danny Green will attract interest from teams and the Knicks are reported to be one of them. Green’s interest in New York however is unclear at this point. His per 36 minute averages last season were 14.7 points, 5 rebounds, 1.6 steals while hitting 3 three’s at a nearly 42 percent clip. This sort of line is exactly the kind of production the Knicks should be getting from their starting shooting guard.

Green built his reputation as a three-point marksman with extremely deep range. With championship pedigree and above average mechanics as a wing-defender, Green would create the spacing for Grant to penetrate and Carmelo Anthony to operate at the elbow or mid-post. The question with Green will be deciphering whether he flourished because of the Spurs cohesive system or if the Spurs thrived partly because of him.

Season	Tm	G	GS	FG	FGA	FG%	3P	3PA	3P%	FT%	TRB	AST	STL	BLK	TOV	PTS
2011-12	SAS	66	38	5.0	11.3	.442	2.4	5.5	.436	.790	5.4	2.0	1.4	1.1	1.6	14.3
2012-13	SAS	80	80	4.9	10.8	.448	2.9	6.8	.429	.848	4.0	2.3	1.5	0.9	1.5	13.7
2013-14	SAS	68	59	4.8	11.0	.432	2.9	6.9	.415	.794	5.0	2.3	1.4	1.3	1.7	13.5
2014-15	SAS	81	80	5.0	11.5	.436	3.0	7.1	.418	.874	5.3	2.5	1.6	1.4	1.4	14.7
Career		323	257	4.9	11.2	.440	2.8	6.7	.420	.829	4.9	2.3	1.5	1.1	1.6	14.1

5 seasons	SAS	303	257	4.9	11.2	.440	2.8	6.7	.423	.832	4.9	2.3	1.5	1.2	1.6	14.1

Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table. Per 36 Minutes*
Generated 6/30/2015.

New York has also been mentioned with Portland Trail Blazers free agent Arron Afflalo. Similar to Green, Afflalo is a rugged defender but doesn’t come up with steals nearly as much. But he is a more polished all-around offensive threat, particularly off the dribble where he is able to create a shot for himself or others.

Afflalo was averaging 14.5 points in 53 games for the Denver Nuggets before being traded to Portland. Adding him to a potential existing backcourt of Jose Calderon, Alexey Shved, Langston Galloway and Ricky Ledo will still leave the team lacking a three-point shooting threat. Afflalo was a serviceable shooter from three-point land last year at 35 percent.

Knicks are frontrunners for two free agents -- Greg Monroe and Arron Afflalo, league sources told Yahoo Sports. Those are realistic targets.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 29, 2015

Another Trail Blazers shooting guard in play for the Knicks will be Wesley Matthews. If New York is confident that Matthews will recover from a ruptured Achilles tendon that ended his season prematurely last year, he can provide the team with solid scoring while being a legitimate three-point weapon any time he is on the floor.

Prior to injury, Matthews was averaging 16 points and hitting 3 three’s at a 39 percent clip. He is reported to be searching for a contract in the $15 million range, which may scare the Knicks off. Coming off a serious injury could either be a major deterrent or serve as negotiating leverage for the Knicks.

Don't think the money will work but #Knicks are among teams on Wes Matthews' radar in free agency, sources w/knowledge of his thinking say.
— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) June 30, 2015

The direction they move in will depend on which big man they can sign and how much of their cap they are willing to devote. All of the available guards are realistic fits in New York but it will be important to attract one on a deal that makes sense to the future of the team.

It may be a stretch for the Knicks to land a more premier guard if they sign two big men or one to a near maximum contract. There are other alternatives, such as Houston’s restricted free agent K.J. McDaniels, an explosive guard-forward with lockdown defensive capabilities that could fill the immediate need in the backcourt.

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