With training camp set to open next month at The Citadel in Charleston, South Carolina, the New York Knicks face heightened expectations with a roster that may be among the NBA’s best.
Here are major questions the team must answer before the season:
Is center still a major issue?
Losing starting center Isaiah Hartenstein in free agency to the Oklahoma City Thunder was a major blow for the Knicks this summer. In response, the front office hasn’t done much to fill the hole he left.
Hartenstein’s ability to facilitate the offense and crash the offensive glass were important for New York last season. He ran the pick-and-roll with Jalen Brunson extremely well, and this partially led to him ranking 11th in the league among centers with 188 assists.
Hartenstein especially played well on the boards, ranking fifth in the league in offensive rebounds in 2023-24 with 244. He also averaged 7.8 points, showing he can get his own shot off as well.
As he’s done before for the Knicks, Mitchell Robinson will fill the center role this season, but his game has glaring weaknesses. Robinson only played 31 games last season because of a foot injury and 59 games the season before.
Robinson is a good rebounder, averaging 3.7 offensive boards for his career, and an elite rim protector (1.9 blocks per game in his career). However, he has never averaged more than an assist a game in a season and lacks that extra threat in the halfcourt offense that Hartenstein provided last season.
Although Robinson has battled injuries, the Knicks have not added other options at center. Forward Precious Achiuwa played minutes at center last season, but he is a natural forward and lacks size (6-foot-8 and 243 pounds). Center Jericho Sims also lacks size (6-foot-10 and 250 pounds) and is a liability with the ball.
More moves could be coming at this position.
Can this team survive injuries?
Last season, almost every Knicks player dealt with injuries. Robinson missed part of the regular season and playoffs. Starting forward Julius Randle suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in late January. Starting forward OG Anunoby missed key games during the regular season and playoffs. Plus, Bojan Bogdanovic, Josh Hart and Brunson suffered injuries during the team’s playoff run.
With head coach Tom Thibodeau’s aggressive coaching approach, it’s almost a guarantee that players will be injured. Does the team have enough depth to make it through an 82-game season and the playoffs?
Guards Miles McBride and Donte DiVincenzo return with forwards Hart and Achiuwa to fill out the rotation. But it was those behind them who proved crucial after injuries mounted last season.
In the offseason, New York signed guard Cameron Payne and forward Marcus Morris Sr., who each have played for three teams in the past three seasons. Guard Alec Burks and forward Bogdanovic are gone, so rookie guard Tyler Kolek may also have a chance to earn minutes.
Does Randle still fit?
Before his season-ending shoulder injury in late January, Randle looked like a core piece of the new-look Knicks. With Anunoby, whom the team acquired in late December, Brunson and Randle in the lineup together, the Knicks went 11-1. During that span, Randle averaged 24 points, 9.2 rebounds and five assists.
But the team finished the season 21-15 without him after going 29-17 before that. It’s impressive that without Randle and Anunoby in the lineup for most of that final stretch, Brunson kept the team on track.
A three-time All-Star, Randle should have decent value on the trade market. The Knicks may decide they are better off without him.