The Knicks are back to playing basketball and are less than two weeks away from opening night. They’ve started 0-2, which nobody really cares about, but we’ve also now seen enough enough minutes from the exhibition matches to get a glimpse of who the winners and losers have been in the early portion of the preseason.
Winner: Jalen Brunson and his wrist
Should anyone have really doubted or even been remotely worried about Brunson’s offseason wrist surgery? No, the captain has repeatedly been the definition of reliable. So it was ridiculous
to ever think that Brunson wouldn’t be prepared or would look off coming off of his injury. But fans are unreasonable. And also, he is a 30 year-old who had an operation on his shooting hand.
Fortunately for Knicks fans though, he’s looked as good as any other Knick. His three-point shot was off against the Wizards as he went just 1-6. But Brunson looks like he’s in midseason form. He’s taking his usual shots, which includes, but isn’t limited to driving layups, floaters, mid range fadeaways, and pull-up threes, and he’s looked comfortable and confident in doing so. Defensively, he’s started the preseason giving good effort, and he’s already drawn multiple charges as well. Brunson and his wrist seem to be doing just fine.
Loser: Pacome Dadiet and his trade value
Coming into training camp and preseason, there couldn’t have been much expectations for Dadiet. He’s now had two full seasons of pretty much being non-existent. His Summer League left a lot to be desired. And he played worse than most fans could’ve imagined during the World Cup qualifiers for the Ivory Coast team. Yet even after all that, he’s found a way to disappoint so far in preseason. In the preseason opener, the team was clearly trying to give him an opportunity to either increase his trade value or at least win some spot minutes, and he failed to do that. And he wasn’t much better in game two against the Wizards.
It’s only been two games, but they’ve both been a failure for Dadiet. He’s scored just nine total points in 30 minutes of play and is shooting just 28.6% from the field without standing out as a playmaker, rebounder, or defender. Dadiet’s path to being a rotation player in New York was pretty thin to begin with. But whatever opportunity he had to at least help the team out by increasing his trade value may be slipping away now too.
Winner: Landry Shamet
Shamet is coming off of two straight training camps where his job wasn’t even guaranteed. He’s battled back from injuries and has consistently displayed a perfect balance of selflessness and staying ready. That lead to him becoming an integral part of the Knicks’ rotation last year. And he was rewarded with a very nice four-year $24 million contract. Shamet rewarded the Knicks and their loyalty by reportedly turning down offers from other contenders.
Now back with the same team for the third straight year-something he’s never done before in his career-the journeyman looks comfortable and confident. He looks posed to not just continue what he’s done but build upon it and has gotten off to an extremely hot start in preseason. He’s averaging 11.5PPG in just 13.5MPG and is shooting an extremely hot 53.3% from the field and 50% from three.
Loser: Miles McBride
The talk around McBride for much of the offseason has been around what the Knicks could get in a trade for him. And after the offensive struggles he went through in the Finals, there are some fans who may have forgotten just how good and valuable the reserve guard is. He’s still one of the best bench perimeter defenders in the league, and that, combined with his much improved three-point shooting makes him so pivotal to what Mike Brown and the Knicks want to do. And nobody should be overly concerned about what he does or doesn’t do in the preseason.
That being said, he’s currently struggling mightily offensively. McBride has so far averaged just 3PPG on 18.2% shooting from the field and 11.1% shooting from three. There were some expectations that he’d showcase a little more after a full offseason to work on some of his weaknesses that got exposed against the Spurs. And fans were excited to see him fully healthy after he revealed that he was still hurt throughout the postseason run. He should be fine eventually but it’s been a rough go for McBride so far.
Winner: Andre Drummond
Many fans had different reactions when Drummond signed with the Knicks this past summer. Some were excited, some were indifferent, and some were disappointed. New York still has a very long season ahead of them, and that should come with opportunities to upgrade at this position one way or another. And during said long season, Drummond will inevitably go through ups and downs. But so far, the veteran center has looked solid.
His pick-and-roll defense, something many were concerned about, has actually looked good. He’s been very active with his hands, and his defense there, especially when paired up with the also active Jose Alvarado, could be a fun tandem. Drummond’s finishing ability is concerning due to his lack of explosiveness. But his surprisingly solid defense, along with his elite-as-advertised rebounding, has been fun to watch.
Loser: Drew Eubanks, Ochai Agbaji, and Tony Bradley
Bruce Brown Jr. was looked at as one of the favorites to win the Knicks’ last roster spot given the team’s previous interest in him. Other than that, there really wasn’t a consensus. Some wanted James Wiseman for his potential Others wanted Eubanks for his defense, passing, and experience. Others wanted Agbaji for… not really sure why.
Two games into preseason, it’s looks clear who Brown and the Knicks have the most interest in. Brown, Wiseman, and Jaden Akins are the only three of the training camp invitees to play in both games. On Thursday night against the Wizards, Eubanks, Agbaji, and Bradley were DNPs. Now, this may just be the way they are splitting up the minutes, and maybe those guys see minutes over Brown and Wiseman when they play the Timberwovles on Monday. Brown, although not overly impressive, has looked solid. And Wiseman, especially against the 76ers, looked good. Neither are locks to make the roster just yet. But it seems like they are a head above Eubanks, Agbaji, and Bradley.
