As the Knicks make their way to the end of the season, piling one loss after another, it's hard to tell anything about their future with much of the roster bound for free agency and hoping to find new homes. And the few players who figure into the future plans have done little to define their future roles.
So as the real season for the Knicks' front office is looming, it's hard to figure just who fits best for a makeover to wipe away the memories of this process.
Is Kevin Durant the key to everything? If the Knicks somehow can coax Durant into coming east, something that they have seemed to have a hint is happening, who fits beside him as a second free agent? What player in the draft could complement him?
For example, the building blocks the Knicks have spent this misery slogging through with in the hope that they will develop for the future are Kevin Knox, the most recent lottery pick, and second-rounder Mitchell Robinson.
Knox has taken on a huge role in terms of minutes and offensive workload. And he plays the same position as Durant. So how do you piece these things together to jump from the worst team in the NBA to one that will convince a player like Durant that this won't turn into a middle of the pack frustration?
"At the end of the day what I'm trying to do with all of them is make them, to a certain extent, positionless," Knicks coach David Fizdale said. "Where they can get to a point where it doesn't matter who they're out there with, that their skill set applies to whatever position they're playing. That's kind of how we're looking at it going forward. I'm not looking too far into the future of who we might get. But our player development is focused on making them complete players."
It's not a unique concept. The Warriors have done it with a number of players who can switch positions seamlessly. The Bucks have opted for a similar tact, filling their roster with long, versatile players.
So could the Knicks play a lineup together with Durant, Kyrie Irving, Zion Williamson, Kevin Knox and Mitchell Robinson? Is there a possibility that Ja Morant and Irving could coexist? It's certainly a better problem than rolling the ball out with the assortment of roster fillers that they've put on the floor this season. In this exercise, consider the Knicks can get the stars they want _ which certainly is no sure thing _ and every mention of Durant is interchangeable with Kawhi Leonard as long as we're imagining things go right for the Knicks. What are the chances?
