Schmeelk: Knicks Need To Put Talent Around Porzingis Quickly
By John Schmeelk
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Kristaps Porzingis put on quite a show for Knicks fans on Wednesday night. He gave them one more glimpse at what this team's collective future could look like.
He hit open 3-pointers, finished near the basket with thunderous dunks, kissed mid-range jumpers off the glass, and got to the free-throw line often throughout an utterly dominating performance in New York's 115-107 victory in Chicago.
Porzingis ended up with a career-high 29 points on the strength of a ridiculous 11-for-16 shooting performance from the field. He added 10 rebounds, giving him yet another double-double.
Combined with Carmelo Anthony's 24 points and five assists, the Knicks outlasted the relatively lifeless Bulls. Robin Lopez chipped in with a double-double of his own (11 points and 13 rebounds), but even with those three players on their respective games the issue was in doubt in the fourth quarter.
The overall effort showed what future seasons could be like if the Knicks don't get Porzingis more help.
Porzingis might very well be a future superstar, but that guarantees the Knicks nothing. Right now, Anthony is the help, but by the time Porzingis performs like he did Wednesday more consistently, Melo will likely be long gone.
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Without Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant wouldn't have all those playoff series victories. LeBron James didn't win it all until he joined up with Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade. Patrick Ewing never won a title because the Knicks couldn't find another great player to put with him.
The darkest example is Anthony Davis. He has been in the league for four seasons and the Pelicans have finished over .500 once. Last season's 45 wins marked the only time he has made the playoffs. Unless Porzingis takes a huge jump in his second year, he won't be a 20-point, 10-rebound player like Davis has been the last two years, either.
Davis' best teammates have been Eric Gordon, Tyreke Evans, Ryan Anderson, Omer Asik and Jrue Holiday. Injuries, over-inflated contracts and ineffectiveness have played Davis' supporting cast, not to mention injuries of his own, and all of that has kept one of the NBA's best players from being any sort of factor in the postseason. Worst of all, the Pelicans are currently playing their worst basketball since Davis' rookie season.
If the Knicks are just as bad three years from now as they are currently, the franchise will be in a lot of trouble. The only thing that should concern the Knicks' front office over the next few offseasons is finding Porzingis a long-term running mate. He needs another young player, preferably a guard, to share the burden of bringing this franchise back to relevance.
Finding a player like that in free agency is near impossible, since other franchises rarely let their stars walk away. It happens, but not often, and the Knicks can't depend on that. The best way, but also far from a surefire method, is to find that player through the draft. The problem is the Knicks won't have a first-round pick this year barring any sort of draft-night trade. They do, however, have future first-round picks, and a very promising player stashed in Europe in Willy Hernangomez.
The best chance the Knicks will have to pair a good young player with Porzingis will be in their potential future (inevitable?) trade of Anthony. If they do, the Knicks will be able to hunt, pick, and choose the type of package they want back. They could prioritize multiple draft picks, or focus on a young player already in the league that is still on a rookie contract.
If the Heat want to make some sort of run, perhaps they would be willing to move Justise Winslow. Maybe the Clippers will decide they want to move on from their core and trade Blake Griffin (he is young enough to play with Porzingis). Or perhaps the Celtics will want to package the Nets' first-round pick this year with a younger player. These are only the options that have been rumored. There's no telling if there are other teams that might want to make big changes and deal young talent for Anthony.
But with any trade of Anthony being only hypothetical at this point, the Knicks need to focus all their offseason cap space and personnel decisions on getting young players that can grow with their young Latvian phenom. Otherwise, Knicks fans will pay big money to see Porzingis at the Garden, but not as part of a winning team.
Schmeelk's Snippets
-- I don't remember Tom Thibodeau's teams ever producing a no-show performance like the Bulls did Wednesday. Their intensity and effort were awful, especially on defense. I would expect them to come out and play a lot better in the second half of their home-and-home against the Knicks on Thursday night at the Garden.
-- I know Knicks fans are getting excited because LeBron professed his love for Anthony and his desire to play with him, but they should not expect James to come running to the Big Apple. It's just extremely unlikely to happen.
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