Part of this decision is based on Fisher's apparent love of Quincy Acy and his ability to hustle.
For that same reason, Fisher has told various media outlets, that he is also leaning towards Iman Shumpert to return to the starting 5. Both of these player remind me of a conversation I once had on a scouting trip with another coach.
I pointed out a kid on the floor who was running around and going after every loose ball. I hadn't see the kid before, and asked my colleague, "Is he any good?". He promptly answered "He tried hard".
That's coach-speak for he's going to work really hard to make up for his complete lack of talent. So, all that being said - it looks like the Knicks starting line to begin the season will be:
PG Jose Calderon
SG Iman Shumpert
SF Carmelo Anthony
PF Quincy Acy
C Samuel Dalembert
Wow.
Wasn’t this the supposed to be a new era of basketball in New York, ushered in by Phil Jackson and his protégé Derek Fisher? This could be one of the all-time worst Knick starting 5s.
There is no question that Calderon can shoot and distribute. He is a wonderful playmaker, but since leaving the security of Toronto’s slow half court system, his trademark assist to turnover ratio has gotten progressively worse.
He is slowing down as he gets older, and he was slow to begin with.
He has also had one of the worst defensive ratings in the entire league each year of his career.
Shump is supposed to be a defensive stopper but for the last year and a half has done very little. His name was rumored in every possible trade last season because his value was dropping fast. Quincy is an undersized 4 that was given more than 11 MPG by the Kings last season - and they were so underwhelmed, they got rid of him at the first chance they had.
He's like Reggie Evans, but without all the rebounds. Wait, what’s Reggie Evans without all the rebounds? Not much.
After a couple decent seasons in 07 and 08, Dalembert has regressed to being just a guy on the offensive end. As a bench big, you’d likely think Dally would be a serviceable piece who could add a bit of a defensive presence; as a starter it sounds like he’s going to regularly be exposed.
When asked about the inefficiency of the triangle during a pre season loss to the Toronto Raptors (in which the Knicks shot 37.8% from the field and 3-23 from deep), Carmelo stated:
“I can’t really worry about what other people are worrying about, whether it works for me or not. I go out there and I don’t have a choice but to make it work. Whether it takes now or it takes later, we don’t have a choice but to make this work”.
Not exactly a ringing endorsement of the new system, is it? What a mess. It looks like it could be a very, very long season for fans of the blue and orange.
