Will the Knicks Finally be Patient?

“Patience is the calm acceptance that things can happen in a different order than the one you have in mind”

-David G. Allen

That quote is for Knicks fans around the globe. Many of you are assuming that this free agency was a complete strike-out. You find yourselves still starving for a winning team with the notion that the day will never come. No Kevin Durant. No Kyrie Irving, and to your surprise, no Zion Williamson. Trust me Knicks fans, your team is finally on the right track after decades of attempting to short-cut your way to relevancy. Don’t believe me? Let me explain.

Financially Responsible:

Just because you have nearly $70M in cap space does not mean you have to spend it all on big names. Obviously, it’s tempting. When you can afford nice things, you want to buy them. That’s simply human nature. But the need to spend cap to make the Knicks relevant has been the franchise’s kryptonite for the past decade. The Knicks have been their own worst enemy. Instead of trying to short-cut their way to a competitive roster by signing free-agents to max contracts—without any type of control over the players—they’ve decided to simply let the young guys develop and acquire more young talent through the draft. Between the location, bird-rights, and overall team chemistry, there is a good chance these guys will want to stay in New York. Instead of signing Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving to shaky four-year max contracts and being a second-round exit for the next four years—with no cap space to play with—you finally have a young team to develop into a potential dynasty.

Pros & Cons of Rebuilding

If the Knicks are finally accepting a rebuild, I have some good news, and some bad news. Let’s start with the bad. For the next 3-5 years, the New York Knicks will most likely be a very bad team. They’ll probably find themselves somewhere between 18-35 wins in a season during these years. They won’t be making a playoff push or hanging banners anytime soon, and you’ll have to hear Stephen A. Smith rant about it the whole time. Not ideal but look at the bright side. All of these young players they will acquire in the upcoming drafts will be on controlled rookie contracts. They will be a part of the team for longer than three to four years. In a nutshell, when these players start to get really good, you don’t have to worry about them jumping ship. When this happens with multiple players, they develop together, learn how to play with each other, and create off-court bonds with each other, which is a huge advantage. People don’t talk about this enough, but this strategy creates better team chemistry. When your team has your back and wants you there, more players will want to come there. When the young guys have developed into legitimate threats in a thriving environment, its way easier to fill out roster spots. Think about it. If you’re a free agent, what are the three main assets you’re looking for in a team? Location, Talent, and how players are treated. Location? You can’t get much better than New York City. It sells itself. All the Knicks need are the two other assets to become a prime destination for free agents. Sadly, they haven’t had those in a while, but they’re finally in route.

This Offseason

The Knicks already have a handful of young talent, and now, they can afford to hang onto them. Look at their roster. They have Dennis Smith Jr, a freak athlete with insane hops and excellent ball-handling skills. Mitchell Robinson, who has been a younger version of DeAndre Jordan so far. R.J Barret, a top prospect coming out of Duke. Kevin Knox, who hasn’t blossomed into anything after his rookie year, but he has potential. Julius Randle, a man who averaged 21 points-per-game last year in his breakout season with the Pelicans. Give this team time and a few more picks. They could really be something special in the future.

The Verdict

After years of riding on the highway of wrong decisions due to a lack of patience, the Knicks finally got off the right exit. I know these next few years are going to be rough to watch, but it will be worth it in the end, I promise. To all the Knicks fans, go back, read the quote at the beginning, and smile. Let the ingredients cook and simmer. There’ll be a delicious meal when its ready.