You can understand how Walt Frazier feels. You can certainly sympathize with Clyde during the dying minutes of Tuesday's particularly egregious game at Madison Square Garden, with the Timberwolves clinching a 112-110 victory over the Knicks as - frankly speaking - the Knicks here played the last three minutes of the game if they were the five cricketers who were first introduced to basketball.
Clyde is a gentleman, and so what he said on the MSG broadcast isn't so much as how he reacted to watching the Knicks down the stretch to act solely as an offense on possession after possession. is disabled. The pain was clearly visible in his voice.
And you can understand, right? Think of asking Beyoncé to sit through a recital where five amateurs try to outdo themselves while singing a horrifically off-key version of "Single Ladies." Think of it as asking Daniel Day-Lewis to sit through a series of screen tests asking people drawn from the street to perform the "Always Be Closing" scene from "Glengarry Glen Ross."
That's where the Knicks are on point guard right now.
"The Knicks are all over the place," Clyde said at one point late in the game, and the anger in his voice was such that you'd expect Mike Breen to give him a consoling hug at the end of the game. But, then again, Clyde has only two out of a million eyes that see the same thing in every game. We can talk about everything that Leon Rose needs to do to pull the Knicks up the ladder in the Eastern Conference. We can't ignore the bright pink elephant in the room anymore.
Kemba Walker played well in his return on Tuesday, but at this stage in his career he is nowhere close to a classic point guard. Derrick Rose's absence has been a major blow to the Knicks, but even at full health, Rose's greatest value at age 33 is as a backup, where he can contribute one half per shift on his knees. Maybe Deuce McBride will be a rotational point keeper someday; It is work in progress now.
Leon Rose needs to target one of the point guards that is likely to come either in the offseason or nearing the trade deadline. The most obvious choice is Jalen Brunson, whom he closely watched last week when the Mavericks visited the Gardens, who has made a decent jump this year and is positioning himself for a tidy salary next summer. Brunson isn't Chris Paul, but he established in Villanova that he has won basketball DNA, which translates quite nicely to the NBA.
Brunson's father, Rick, is an ex-Nick and works for Tom Thibodeau in both Chicago and Minnesota, so a quick acquaintance will take place there. If the Maves are ready to transfer him before the February 10 trade deadline, it gives Brunson and the Knicks two months to see what the game might turn out to be with RJ Barrett, Cam Radish and Julius Randall. , Brunson will likely order before it moves upwards of $80 million.
The Knicks could also target Indiana's Malcolm Brogdon, who is still on a four-year, first-year, $85 million contract - though that may not happen until the summer and the chances for his return are much higher than Brunson's. Will be
That part is now on Leon Rose's shoulders. They decided to cast Obie Toppin over both Cole Anthony and Tyrese Halberton, and while Toppin is a Garden favorite right now, that choice already seems questionable, especially because Thibodeau clearly doesn't love Obie. He decided not to make a play for Russell Westbrook (thank god), Fred VanVleet (regrets) and Lonzo Ball (sigh). He has given his time.
It's time to strike. It's cumbersome to watch Alec Burkes play out of position and the Knicks in crunch time without a compass, waiting for Randall or Barrett to make a play. New York - the cradle of point defenders for generations - is wanted in the worst way possible. And you don't have to be one of the nicest people - like Clyde - to recognize it.