New York Knicks: 3 players that exceeded expectations this year

Prior to the 2020-21 NBA season, the New York Knicks were projected to miss the playoffs yet again, extending the franchise’s drought to nine years.

The team would continue its lengthy rebuild, hoping the 2021 draft pick would finally help turn the franchise around. And in conjunction with its own pick, New York has the rights to the Dallas Mavericks’ first-round pick as a result of the Kristaps Porzingis trade.

After securing two prospects — or packaging the picks to garner a greater value — the Knicks would likely aim to sign a top-tier free agent after striking out in previous offseasons.

The New York Knicks finished their best season since 2012-13. Here are three players that exceeded expectations along the way.

From there, the franchise would hypothetically be turned around. The Knicks would no longer be viewed as a dreadful team, sitting at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings.

However, these are simply expectations and predictions from before the season. And for the most part, they were fair assessments. Julius Randle headed into year two with the Knicks after a disappointing first season, and Tom Thibodeau returned to coaching after being fired by the Minnesota Timberwolves in January 2019.

But now it’s July and while the Knicks are in summer mode, those expectations were shattered over the course of the season.

The Knicks increased their win total by 20, going from 21-45 in 2019-20 to 41-31 in 2020-21. Furthermore, this garnered the franchise its first playoff berth since 2013.

As the 4-seed, the Knicks played the Atlanta Hawks in the first round, and that was the end to New York’s historic season.

Led by All-Star Randle, the Knicks crushed team expectations. Additionally, multiple players stood out as they exceeded their preseason media projections.

Here are the three Knicks players that exceeded expectations in the 2020-21 season.

New York Knicks that exceeded expectations: 3. Nerlens Noel

Once deemed a top prospect in the 2013 NBA Draft, Nerlens Noel has failed to live up to expectations. He was considered the top selection before tearing his ACL at the University of Kentucky. He was, however, still selected in the top 10, ultimately falling to the No. 6 pick.

Through his first few seasons, Noel’s defense stood out, but he hadn’t become the star he was projected to be. Even so, the Dallas Mavericks offered him a four-year, $70 million contract following the 2016-17 season. Noel turned it down, betting on himself which did not pay off.

That said, the New York Knicks were not expecting large production from Noel when they signed him to back up Mitchell Robinson in the 2020-21 season.

Well, Noel proved not only that he can be a reliable backup center, but he showcased his talent and potential to be a consistent, starting center on a playoff team.

When Robinson was sidelined with an injury in mid February, Noel took over and started in 41 of the 42 games he played in averaging 5.9 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game. These numbers are fairly similar to his season averages, and most notably his 2.2 BPG over the full season was the third best in the league.

Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau, a defensive specialist, utilized Noel’s skills the best way possible. He was the anchor of the Knicks’ defense which was ranked first in terms of opponents points per game and third for defensive rating.

But with Noel’s resurgence, he’ll become more desirable by other teams now that he’s an unrestricted free agent. Should he get an offer similar to the four-year, $70 million deal the Mavericks offered? No, that would be absurd. However, Noel has earned himself the right for a multi-year deal, providing him with some security for the next few seasons.

Robinson will be healthy next season and should return to the starting lineup, but the Knicks should still resign Noel. His impact defensively was key to the Knicks success and if they expect to surpass those heights, they’ll need him back.

New York Knicks that exceeded expectations: 2. Immanuel Quickley

The New York Knicks found themselves in the lottery once again in the 2020 NBA Draft. However, Immanuel Quickley, the team’s most productive rookie this season, was taken late in the first round.

Most players in that range or further down into the second round aren’t expected to impact the team much in their first season. But, of course, there have been exceptions to this and Quickley certainly is one of them.

Quickley entered the draft as the reigning SEC Player of the Year averaging 16.1 points per game on 42.8 percent from downtown while at the University of Kentucky. Nevertheless, some believed he was picked earlier than he should have been — most notably CBS Sports who gave the pick a D+.

"“He’s the reigning SEC player of the year and shot 42 percent from 3-point range, but this is nearly 30 spots higher than I expected,” Gary Parrish wrote. “His upside just does not match this place in the draft, but he could be a good shooter if nothing else.”"

While Parrish was wrong, not many people expected Quickley to blossom so quickly — pun intended. Instead, the focus was on the other Knicks’ rookie Obi Toppin, who was selected No. 8 overall.

Nevertheless, the praise at the end of the season was given to Quickley, He earned All-Rookie Second Team honors with averages of 11.4 points and 2.0 assists per game on .395/.389/.891 shooting splits.

The field goal percentage needs to improve, but he’s in good shape from behind the arc and even better from the foul line. He finished 11th in best free-throw percentage in the NBA.

Contrary to the beginning of the 2020-21 season, Quickley will have many eyes on him to see if he takes the next step in his development. He projects to be a better scorer than facilitator, but may still run the point guard given his 6-foot-3 stature and the Knicks’ current lack of point guards.

New York Knicks that exceeded expectations: 1. Julius Randle

The summer of 2019 was a tough one for New York Knicks’ fans. They had hoped to luck into the No. 1 pick to select Zion Williamson and then shortly after sign superstars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.

The Knicks ended up with the No. 3 pick which turned into RJ Barrett and then signed Julius Randle to a three-year, $62 million deal. It didn’t go as planned, and many fans were unhappy with the offseason.

Not me, however. The possibility of getting Durant and Irving seemed more of a fantasy than actuality, so I shifted gears to focus on the benefits of signing Randle to a smaller deal.

The duo of Barrett and Randle entered the 2019-20 season with hopes of turning the Knicks around. They couldn’t, and the team was bad, again.

Randle, particularly, disappointed in his first season as the No. 1 option. He averaged 19.5 points and 9.7 rebounds per game, but he tallied 3.1 assists to 3.0 turnovers per game.

But then came 2020-21. The Knicks were good and Randle had a lot to do with that. He had the best season of his career, earning an All-Star appearance and an All-NBA Second Team selection — both of which were the first of his career.

And he won the Most Improved Player award after averaging 24.1 points, 10.2 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game, all of which led the Knicks. He was efficient, too, shooting 45.6 percent from the field, 41.1 percent from 3 and 81.1 percent from the free-throw line.

While I expected Randle to breakout given I called him a “budding star” in 2019, not many people were with me, especially after the first season. Randle proved the doubters wrong and in doing so, he led the Knicks to their best season since 2012-13.

Sure, the playoffs didn’t go well for Randle as he struggled in the first-round loss to the Atlanta Hawks. However, it’s one of few blemishes on a terrific season. Going into next year, he has to continue to be the Knicks’ leader and power them deeper into the postseason.