A few decades ago, the word “microwave” mentioned in a basketball context was usually in reference to Brooklyn’s Vinnie Johnson, the muscular guard who could come off the bench cold and heat up in a hurry with a flurry of buckets, mostly as a member of the Detroit Pistons. With more NBA teams playing at a faster pace, with the continued flurry of three-point field goals attempted after just one pass and with teams hoarding cap space to make a run at multiple rising free agents and instant credibility, the word has taken on a different meaning. Everyone is in a hurry. Evidently, basketball’s microwave mentality extends to the evaluation of players just entering the league, players who remember high school like it was yesterday because, figuratively speaking, it was.
SCOUTS’ EARLY ASSESSMENT OF A COUPLE OF YOUNGSTERS
Recently one of the New York City tabloids published an article outlining some scathing criticisms of the Knicks’ two most recent lottery picks, Frank Ntilikina and Kevin Knox, courtesy of some anonymous scouts and executives. This was immediately followed by several other writers suggesting the Knicks have already given up on Ntilikina. And now the internet is littered with various trade scenarios involving the 20-year old, second-year player from France, who has — at least for now — seen his playing time dip to almost nothing. In recent college drafts the NBA has already demonstrated its token regard for players entering the league at 22-years old. It now risks earning a reputation as a league that eats its unpolished young, as well.
The remarks aren’t as inaccurate as they are premature, as one of the subjects hasn’t reached 20 NBA games yet, while the other just completed his first NBA training camp a few months ago.
ON THE 19-YEAR-OLD ROOKIE, KEVIN KNOX:
“HE’S LOOKING FOR HIS SHOT RIGHT AWAY.”
OK, but the Knicks would be lying of they told you a) they drafted this kid as an 18-year-old expecting a well-rounded, finished product, or b) they drafted him for his defense. They basically have to teach him how to play NBA basketball.
“HE’S CAPABLE OF GETTING CLOSER TO THE BASKET THAN LAUNCHING THREE-POINTERS.”
This, in a league where 35 percent of the field goals attempted are from three-point range, is a problem?
“SOMETIMES IT LOOKS LIKE HE DOESN’T WANT TO PLAY.”
Now why wouldn’t he want to play?
“THERE’S LOOSE BALLS HE CAN GET TO.”
The Knicks have witnessed several well-compensated veteran players wearing their colors who played at Madison Square Garden for several years and seldom dove on the floor for a loose ball or took a charge.
“HE’S LAZY ON DEFENSE A BIT.”
Perhaps, but that would put him in the same category as most 19-year-olds in the NBA. Ironically, Ntilikina would be a rare exception. And with teams routinely putting up over 110 points per game, there are plenty of veterans who aren’t shining on that end of the court, either.
“HE’S SHOOTING ON LIKE 80 PERCENT OF HIS TOUCHES.”
There are several players in the Basketball Hall of Fame, and several others on their way there, who have survived the same criticism.
“HE ACTS YOUNGER THAN HIS AGE.”
What? Does he suck his thumb during timeouts? Toss paper airplanes during film sessions? Play with a Talking GI Joe doll during flights? What?
He’s 19.
ON THE 20-YEAR-OLD FRANK NTILIKINA:
“THEY GAVE HIM ENOUGH CHANCES.”
Oh, really? The Knicks brought in a journeyman player and another former lottery pick, both of whom cut into his minutes last season and they’ve been jerking his minutes around this season. The team was destined to go nowhere in either season, so why not let him learn on the court instead of messing with his head?
“THE KID IS VERY UNAGGRESSIVE AND SOFT.”
This, in a league where 7-foot, 270-pound centers now routinely camp outside the three-point arc and launch shots. OK, so he doesn’t have Westbrook’s ferocity, but how many players do? Yes, he’s timid offensively, because he’s probably looking over to the bench every time he misses a shot to see if the team has added yet another point guard to the roster while he’s on the court.
It’s ironic that the other is getting criticized for shooting too much while this guy gets panned for not looking for his offense. Both need to figure out what they’re doing, so let them do it.
“HE HAS NO OFFENSIVE STRENGTH AND DOESN’T REALLY HAVE A POSITION.”
In today’s NBA, there are only a handful of players who actually have a position.
“WHEN HE GOT INTO THE SIXERS GAME, HE WAS EMBARRASSED BY J.J. REDICK.”
J.J. Redick is a 13-year veteran with nearly 10,000 career points. He’s not a star, but he knows how to play, and certainly knows how to exploit new players. Ntilikina was 7 or 8 years old when Redick played in his first NBA game.
“OTHER SCOUTS TELL ME HE’S A GREAT DEFENDER. I DON’T SEE A GREAT DEFENDER.”
The average second-year player is not even a good defender, and on the subject of this kid’s defense, most pundits discuss his potential as a great one because of his long limbs AND his willingness to play that end of the floor.
REBUILDING REQUIRES PATIENCE
So here are two NBA youngsters getting ripped, two players whose combined age (39) is less than that of Atlanta’s Vince Carter (41), one of whom has barely a month of NBA competition under his belt while the other gets jerked on and out of the lineup and watched as the team acquire two players at his position before the ink dried on his rookie contract.
Unfortunately, some fans are buying into these assessments and are ready to bail on these guys for different reasons. Just a few months ago, Knox was being compared to Kevin Durant and others based on his performance in the NBA Summer League, and is now facing stiffer competition on a nightly basis. The expectations for Ntilikina were at the opposite end; folks weren’t expecting much.
To be fair, Ntilikina was not the choice of the current Knick brass but of predecessor Phil Jackson, who felt the player was better suited for the Triangle Offense, basketball’s version of the 8-track player.
I might be in the minority, but I still think there’s something there. But it might take a trade to find out
Unless the Knicks set the microwave on high and sign two top-level free agents in July of 2019 AND Kristaps Porzingis returns 100 percent healthy, the team is still a long way from respectability, and it will be on the backs of their young players if it happens at all.
Time may reveal that neither one can really play, but they at least deserve a chance.
