5 players that should be part of New York Knicks long-term core
5. Kevin Knox II
After being thrown into the fire as a rookie, the New York Knicks have lessened Kevin Knox II’s role. Through 15 games, he’s been a bench player behind forwards Marcus Morris and Julius Randle — two free-agent signings.
With the two experienced forwards in the starting lineup, Knox has yet to start a game this season. Last season, he started 57 of his 75 games.
Knox is playing just 21.3 minutes per game, which has caused his points and rebounds per game averages to dip from 12.8 to 8.7 and 4.5 to 3.1, respectively.
RJ Barrett continues his war with rims, throwing it down on the lob from Kevin Knox. Barrett started the break by causing a steal and then finishes it off too to key the Knicks comeback. https://t.co/J1QIktlqJl pic.twitter.com/Z0mDnNnvsy
— Mike Vorkunov (@MikeVorkunov) November 13, 2019
On the bright side, Knox gets to match up against other bench players — a step down from playing against starters last season.
This will allow Knox to improve upon his efficiency, and so far, he has.
The 20-year-old forward has bumped up his field-goal percentage from 37 percent to 39.6 percent and his 3-point percentage from 34.3 percent to 40 percent. Additionally, his effective field-goal percentage has jumped from 43.8 percent to 50 percent and his true shooting percentage has increased from 47.5 percent to 53 percent.
Yes, the field-goal percentage is still worrisome. However, it’s promising to see his 3-point, effective field-goal and true shooting jump 5 to 6 percentage points each.
An All-Star future for Knox may not be imminent, but a steady improvement to his efficiency throughout the next few years will allow Knox to thrive as a starting forward in the mid-2020s.