Welcome to part II of the Knicks Pulse Check! Where we update the fans with the continuing trends of the New York Knicks.
At the end of part I of the Knicks Pulse Check, I claimed that the New York Knicks would cement themselves as one of the premier teams in the Eastern Conference. And while close may only count in horseshoes and grenades, I’d like to think that, after 20 games, fans are pretty satisfied with their team’s growth on both ends of the court.
Since the first 10 games of the season, the Knicks have gone 7-3 with impressive wins over the Miami Heat, Atlanta Hawks, and an away win at the Toronto Raptors on the second night of a back-to-back. Unfortunately, this 10-game set ended with a brutal loss at the hands of the Milwaukee Bucks, which ended the Knicks’ In-Season Tournament experience. Overall, the Knicks are 12-8 with the league’s fifth-best net rating, 12th-best offensive rating, and 3rd-best defensive rating. As we peel back the layers of the onion, we also note that the Knicks are ranked 7th in three-point percentage, and 1st in opponents’ points per game. Not bad at all for coach Tom Thibodeau and his troops.
November 15th – December 5th (7-3) Overall – (12-8)
Threeeee-point goooaallllll
One of the biggest differences between the first 10 games of the season to now has been three-point shooting efficiency. The Knicks improved from 13th to 8th in the league in three-point percentage, and a lot of that has to do with Jalen Brunson. The Athletic’s Fred Katz detailed Brunson’s impressive 5-4-3-2-1 practice routine, which involves shooting five shots from five different spots, in descending order, from beyond the three-point arc. Clearly, the work has paid off, as the former Villanova star is shooting a blistering 45.7 percent on 6.9 three-point attempts per game.
Per the NBA’s tracking stats, Brunson is shooting 43.8 percent on pull-up threes – and for players averaging at least 35 minutes per night, this eclipses some of the game’s best players like Jayson Tatum (29.5 percent), Kevin Durant (38.7), and Luka Doncic (40.8). Brunson’s overall effective field goal percentage on pull-up shooting is 54.2, which ranks higher than both, Damian Lillard (48.5) and Donovan Mitchell (48.9). In fact, the only players ahead of JB in that category include Doncic (55.4) and De’Aaron Fox (54.6) – pretty good company.
The best part about the Knicks’ resurgence from three is that they’re ranked 8th in the league with Julius Randle only shooting 29.2 percent from the three-point line. Similar to his offensive struggles earlier this season, this drought from three won’t last. Randle hasn’t shot below 30 percent from three since his first season with the Knicks, and anyone who has watched him recently knows that his best is yet to come. For his efforts, Randle was recently named Eastern Conference Player of the Week after averaging 24.7 points per game, 13.3 rebounds per game, and 7.3 assists per game.
RJ back to earth?
Although I haven’t given up hope, it sure looks like the first 10-game version of RJ Barrett may have been fool’s gold. There are still reasons to be encouraged, but from a scoring efficiency standpoint, we’ve seen a return back to the RJ of old. Since returning from migraines, which kept him sidelined for three games, RJ is shooting 35.1 percent from the field and a ghastly 25 percent from the three-point line. However, RJ’s improvement from the free-throw line has continued – as he’s shot 85.7 percent from the stripe since November 18th.
Despite the cause for concern, Barrett has still demonstrated growth in his processing of the game – specifically as it relates to his passing and decision-making when he has the ball in his hands. RJ has had good chemistry with Mitch on lob passes, and he’s even found the big man underneath the rim for a couple of wrap-around passes off his drives as well.
Grimes to the pine?
Despite being my pre-season break-out performer pick this year, Quentin Grimes has been the most underwhelming Knick this season. The hype was there. Fans (myself included) saw all the JJ Reddick workout videos and thought QG would be firing away from three, but that just hasn’t been the case. Through 20 games, Grimes’ three-point attempts are down this season(4.7 3PA) compared to last season (5.7 3PA). He’s shooting 34.5 percent from the three-point line, and pretty much all of his stats are down this season, including points per game, free-throw percentage, assists per game, and rebounds per game.
To make matters more interesting, newly-signed Donte DiVincenzo has been playing really well. Playing 20.3 minutes per game, Divo is averaging 9.1 points per game, while shooting 42.7 percent from the three-point line on 5.2 three-point attempts per game. Donte has been a solid defender and has become a fan-favorite – so much so, that fans are now calling for Divo to take Grimes’ place in the starting lineup.
On the surface this appears like a good move, however, I’m not sure it’s going to get Grimes going in the way it’s intended. Grimes’ current role on the offense is to catch and shoot. He rarely creates offense for himself, and essentially focuses on guarding the opposing team’s best guard/forward, and waiting threes on the wing. There is no one in the second unit that is going to make the defense collapse in the way that both Randle and Brunson can. As a result, I think Grimes’ shot attempts would actually go down if he was placed with the bench unit.
December promises to be an interesting month for the Knicks. The orange and blue will face the Celtics, go back-to-back against the Suns and Clippers, face the Bucks twice (at home), and finish the month off with another back-to-back against the Magic and Pacers. They say pressure makes diamonds, but it would be nice for the NBA-scheduling gods to throw us a bone every now and then. Just getting out of this month injury-free and above .500 might be a huge win for the Knicks.
Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below! Stay tuned to KnicksFanTV.com for the latest Knicks news, rumors, and recaps throughout the NBA season. Subscribe to the newsletter for KFTV content and events, shop discounts, and more at bit.ly/kftvmail. And in case you missed it, check out CP the Fanchise’s interview with The Kid Mero!
