New York Knicks: 3 reasons to trade for Zach LaVine

2. The history with Tom Thibodeau

LaVine’s history with Thibodeau is another reason to bring him in. LaVine is another player who bucks the trend that guys don’t want to play for Thibs. I’m not saying this Knicks team should mirror Thibodeau’s ill-fated Timberbulls experiment. There’s no room for Derrick Rose on this roster. But this goes beyond just a few kind words from LaVine about his former coach.

But if any coach in the league can get LaVine to play consistent defense it’s Thibodeau. Thibodeau’s won with Carlos Boozer, Nate Robinson, and Kyle Korver. He can win with LaVine.

Let’s address LaVine’s defense. The metrics tell us LaVine is one of the worst defenders in the NBA. The Bulls allow 7.2 points per 100 possessions more with him on the court. He’s not good, but his athleticism and the videotape tells us he can be solid.

During preseason, LaVine told The Athletic he was, “tired of people talking s*** about his defense.” He talked about taking more pride in his play on that end of the court and noted the results would show that.

The biggest problem with LaVine is his off-ball defense. I don’t think LaVine is lazy. I think he has a really bad coach. With Thibodeau, that obviously won’t be an issue.

When LaVine’s on the court with Kris Dunn — one of the league’s best defenders — the Bulls allow 107.4 points per 100 possessions. If the Bulls played that level of defense at all times, they’d be a top-six defense in the NBA.

I could see something similar happening with Frank Ntilikina. You add on Mitchell Robinson to cover up some of LaVine’s mistakes ala Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert and maybe we aren’t complaining as much.

LaVine’s only season with Thibodeau in Minnesota (2016-17) showed promise. His usage rate was the lowest of his career, while his 3-point rate was the highest. He still managed to score 18.9 points per game on a slash line of .459/.387/.836.

Not surprisingly, his point guard was the perpetually underrated Ricky Rubio. Rubio’s presence forced LaVine to play off the ball significantly more.

According to Synergy, LaVine shot 45.9 percent overall and 39.7 percent from 3-point range on passes from Rubio. The duo developed excellent chemistry — as Rubio does with most of his teammates — before an ACL tear ended LaVine’s season. We could see a completely different LaVine if Thibodeau and Rose were able to get a pass-first point guard similar to Rubio.