The Knicks have been playing great as of late; making it back to .500, finally, and with Jeremy Lin setting the world on fire. However, with Lin and Harrelson and Smith and Davis all in the fold, the Knicks are a deep, deep team, which is both an opportunity and a problem. Without much time for a core rotation of 8 or 9 players to gel before the playoffs, it is important that the first team and first guys off the bench get some good reps together, in order to be ready for the playoffs. However, this season being what it is, that depth and getting star players (especially those that look tired, flat and without hop in their step like Amare) rest is important for making it through the regular season and getting a high enough seed to avoid Chicago and Miami in the first round.
So, we look to the Knicks' rotation last night, one of their first full games with everyone at their disposal. The stats may be a little off since Harrelson was just back and the game was a little bit of a blowout in the second half, but it is the most recent and best example we have. Here are the playing time figures from last night, in descending order:
Anthony 34
Lin 33
Chandler 31
Stoudemire 28
Shumpert 22
Fields 20
Smith 20
Jeffries 20
Novak 17
Davis 15
Bibby 0
Douglas 0
Harrleson 0
There are 240 minutes available to play in any game. For simplicities sake, we'll break them up into the five traditional positions, which mean less and less in today's game, and even less than that in D'Antoni's offense.
Center
Chandler has been our defensive anchor, and hidden some of the glaring problems we have defending at almost every other position. He has also run the pick and roll very well, cleaned up the glass, and in general, been everything we could have asked for. He also is older, has had toe issues before that scuttled trades, has been prone to foul trouble in the past (though not this year) and wasn't resigned by the defending NBA champions. Our investment in him could start to look foolish in years two and three if he gets worn out in this crazy season. 32 minutes is probable just the right amount for him to be playing in the regular season. Give Harrelson or James, if he ever gets called up, 2 or 3 minutes for foul trouble and/or breathers or blowouts, and there are 13 minutes left at the 5 every night. In his first season here, and in Phoenix, Amare did extremely well as a 5. Not on defense, of course, but on offense. Our defense does poorly when Chandler leaves the game anyway, so playing Amare at the 5 for 10 minutes a game could be something that sparks him. The remaining 3 or 4 minutes should go to Jeffries, simply for his defensive prowess and long arms.
Power Forward
Amare is the starter here, and should stay so. He has been mostly down this year after being mostly up last year, but he is still one of the better big men in the league. However, his knees are fragile, and has shown throughout his career that he is better when he is fresh. 32 minutes should probably be his max as well. Now, if he is playing 10 minutes a night at the 5, that leave him 22 minutes a night at the 4, which leaves 26 minutes left to divvy up amongst other players. Novak, Jeffries and even Fields have all played the 4 for the Knicks, and well. However, some of that playing time should be given to Anthony. While in Denver, and occasionally while in New York, while at the 4, Melo has killed defending 4s with his quickness and range. Since it is very limiting defensively, he should be limited to 10 minutes here. That leaves 16 minutes for Jeffries and Novak. Jaffries provides defensive prowess and Novak has been shooting the ball out of his mind. I say Novak gets 10 minutes here and Jeffries gets the additional 6.
Small Forward
Anthony continues to start here, and being younger and healthier than the other two starters on the front line, should be able to play 38 minutes a night. With 10 at the 4, that leaves 28 at the 3, which leaves 20 minutes for other to divvy up. 10 should go to Fields and 10 to Smith, depending on the matchups that night.
Shooting Guard
Fields or Smith can start, it matters not. They will each play some 3 and each play some 2. 24 minutes here gets divided amongst the two of them, leaving 24 minutes at the 2. Shumpert has been streaky offensively and great defensively. He deserves at least 16 minutes a night. That leaves 8 minutes for Davis to play off the ball when Lin and he are on the court together.
Point Guard
Lin has been nothing short of a superstar for a month now. As he goes, so will this Knicks team go. He has been playing too many minutes, and as a younger player whose speed is a huge part of his game, should be limited to 32 minutes a game. That leaves 16 minutes here. 12 go to Davis, and 4 go to Douglas for fouling/defensive purposes, or maybe Bibby if everyone else has a heart attack.
So, this plan shakes out like this:
Anthony 38
Stoudemire 32
Chandler 32
Lin 32
Fields 20
Smith 20
Davis 20
Shumpert 16
Novak 10
Jeffries 10
Douglas 4
Harrleson 3
Now, on most nights Harrleson and Douglas won't play at all, but that still leaves a rotation of 10 players. In this crazy season, and for the good of the future of the franchise, it's probably best to keep running out ten guys every night. But come playoffs, a rotation has to be tightened. Who loses playing time? Novak, who can't miss? Jeffries, our second best defensive player? Shumpert, our best perimeter defender?
There is, in all likelihood, too much depth on the Knicks roster right now, even before Bill Walker or Jerome James are called up. it's a great problem to have, but a problem nonetheless. In another post, I'll go over some trades the Knicks should look to make, both large and small.
