TripleThreat wrote:Knixkik wrote:Not a lot of teams need a pg so market might be small. Rubio would improve our defense and provide excellent playmaking. Shooting is an issue but no worse than rose. Minnesota is looking for a stopgap pg to split time with dunn and some real big man help. Jennings and o'quinn maybe? Some cash or 2nd round pick for a sweetener? Would need a filler to match contracts too. Is there anything possible? Rubio, baker, kuz, melo, and KP with rose, Lee, Noah etc off the bench could be interesting.
Positional Value Tree For The NBA
1) The absolute hardest thing for any team to find is a franchise starting center. The most ideal state is a player who is young, still emerging and moving into his prime, still on a cost controlled rookie contract, can defend the rim, can do enough on offense to keep the game from being a 4 on 5 situation, can be disruptive and alter shots, can move well without the ball, can function as a passer and the bonus baby is being able to hit from 3 point range.
2) Wing players (SF/SG types) who can defend on the perimeter and lock down their man while also being able to attack the rim offensively and hit the 3 point shot at an elite rate.
3) Power forwards who can operate as Stretch 4s and give you offense and rebounding
4) Point guards
The salary cap in the NBA is not infinite. There are a limited number of trades, draft picks and free agents you can sign. Unlike the MLB and NFL, you cannot massively turn over an NBA roster in one season and have it end well. Time and time again, stable rosters tha fit well and play team ball win basketball games. They build chemistry and rapport over time
If the Knicks want to win and win consistently, they need pivots and wings. Do they have a stable pivot rotation now? No. Do they have a stable wing situation now? No. So PG should be last on the list.
Good teams, strong franchises churn the PG position. They use cheaper free agents. They use draft picks they develop. They make small trades. What they don't do is pay out the nose for an "elite PG" Some teams have elite PGs and win, but often they drafted and developed said player, absorbing his critical COST CONTROLLED years.
Trading for an expensive older point guard is not the answer. Going cheap on the position and focusing on pivots and wings is the path to winning. You cannot win unless you can defend. You cannot defend without protecting the rim and locking it down on the perimeter.
Rose has zero trade value. Even if he did, going for Rubio would be a step backwards.
Melo does not move well off the ball.
MELO DOES NOT MOVE WELL OFF THE BALL.
He's been in the league a long time, over a decade, he's not going to change. He's a ball stopper, shot jacker and iso hero ball chucker with questionable shot selection who freezes out his team mates and does not play effective team basketball.
HE DOES NOT MOVE WELL OFF THE BALL. Could he if he tried and wanted to? Yes, he's that talented. Will he? No, because he doesn't care about team basketball.
There is ZERO POINT in getting a point guard who can pass the ball if your "franchise player" is a hero ball shot jacker who does not move well off the ball.
What the Knicks need if Melo is going to be around is someone who can DEFEND at a plus level. And can contribute OFF THE BALL ( because with Melo hogging it, said player won't be getting it much)
Look, I got these awesome rims for such a great price! But dude, you don't even have a car. So what, I got some awesome rims, yo!
Every discussion about an expensive older point guard sounds like that to me. It sounds like someone buying a sound system and rims and car seats and fuzzy dice when they don't even have a freaking car.
IF and it's a big IF, that the Knicks could get Rubio, there's usually a REASON FOR IT. Same as there was a reason why the Knicks could get a point guard in Rose with a quasi-criminal past, is horrible with the press, had an injury history and shows zero
leadership.
Totally crazy idea. Slowly and progressively build through the draft and wait and pray for Melo to burn off this roster.
Just touching on the bold part, Rubio is only 26 years old, an age most guys are just starting to hit their primes. Also, he only makes 13 mil a year, which is a cheaper starting PG. He has 2 full seasons left on his contract, and even if we find a PG in the draft, that player will need time to adjust to the league and we will need to determine if that player is going to make it as an NBA starting PG. The draft is far from a sure thing. It would be nice to have a player like Rubio for 2 years while evaluating the PG situation. Drafting a PG and plugging that 19 year old into a starting spot is unlikely. This buys time to see what we have and what direction to go. Trading for Rubio is not a quick-fix type thing, it's a low-risk trade that allows time to replace or develop a PG. if there becomes an opportunity to get one.
