 |
| Bygones? |
Brown is a young, (drafted 40th overall in the 2009 draft) 6'8" swingman with promise. His pro minutes have been so limited that they are not even worth analyzing at this point (9.4 minutes per game last season, 12 this year).
It's worth noting his steady improvement in college, though. As a Xavier freshman he averaged 6 points and 4 boards per game. As a sophomore, 11 and 6.5. As a senior, 14 and 6. He was also a solid 3-point shooter, so I'm sure D'Antoni is salivating at the news of his signing. He shot 41.5% from downtown for his college career.
But the move is puzzling because of what the Knicks desperately need, which is a center.
Neither Jefferies nor Brown appears to fill that role; many Knicks fans yearn for the likes of Leon Powe, who appears to be headed towards Miami or back to Boston.
Thus far, Donnie Walsh has done no wrong in my eyes; he has transformed the Knicks from a bumbling squad of delinquent losers into a star-studded (albeit small) group of contenders in just two years. Here's to hoping that, as usual, he see's a little bit more than the casual observer.
It seems D'antoni is content playing players out of position to exploit mismatches on the offensive end. Amar'e is too quick for centers, and Melo too quick for PFs. In the past the Knicks have had conventional bigs/center options and D'antoni has refused to play them (Darko,Jordan Hill, Curry, Mosgov for long stretches, Anthony Randolph) so its not that surprising that Walsh didn't acquire a center.
ReplyDeleteCoach played a similar style in Pheonix where Amar'e played lots of center and Marion lots of power forward.
The hope is that with the smaller, quicker lineups we will still be able to rebound and defend other bigs well enough that it doesn't cancel out the advantage on the other end. Also we have to hope Amar'e doesn't get warn out constantly competing against bigger players.