Knicks Summer League Has Ended: Final Impressions

The New York Knicks played their final Summer League game against the Washington Wizards in an OT thriller in which they came out victorious 109-107. The Knicks finished with an 3-2 record, our first winning Summer League record since 2007's 5-0 tear through led by Lil' Nate Robinson and company. Our Summer League squad is visibly more talented then that of last year after an embarrassing 0-5 finish. We've been turning this team around and hopefully we can keep this train moving. Below I have posted an analysis (Based on the opinion of yours truly) of our 3 draft picks and none other then Toney Douglas and Bill Walker.

Toney Douglas

Toney Douglas played well all throughout, although he lacked an scoring edge in a couple of games, he made up for it with Steals, Assist and Rebounds. He averaged 14.0PPG, 4.0RPG, 5.2APG and 3.0 SPG all in 29 minutes per. In my opinion he was a great facilitator and ran the floor well. Some people commented on him not caring or not giving all of his effort because it was in fact the Summer League and "unimportant". I couldn't disagree with those people more. He showed leadership qualities in the huddle, he rallied the troops and he played his heart out. Don't knock his hustle, he played hard and well. He had 27 points, 6 Rebounds, 5 Assist and 4 Steals against the Denver Nuggets. Yes its only a Summer League team but it is one of the best Summer League teams around and he killed against them. He's improving, I'm not worried about Douglas in the slightest bit. He's gonna excel next year hands down and if defenses sleep on him he'll make them pay.

Bill Walker

Bill Walker had decent play in the Summer League. Nothing spectacular, nothing horrible. Although he did have a horrible game 3 against the Toronto Raptors putting up a horrid 3 points and 4 rebounds in 21 minutes he bounced back with 19 Points and 5 Assist in a win over the Detroit Pistons. Walker averaged 12PPG, 3RPG and 1.8APG. Being that Walker isn't gonna have an extremely huge role in our game plan next year with all the new additions, these stats aren't that bad. I've never been one to think that Walker would be some kind of All-Star but i wont take away from the skills that he has. He's a decent role player and a nice piece of the puzzle for our team, what more can you realistically ask for? He has such a nice stroke, when he shoots you expect a bucket. He shoots with an cockiness almost because his shot is so nice. He fits our team nicely and this is another guy that people might sleep on. Lets face it, regardless of what we do we are still the New York Knicks. People aren't gonna respect us because they're used to us being bad. If they play us with that type of mentality, players like Walker and Douglas will make them pay and you can pretty much bet on that.

The King Of New York.. Landry Fields

Landry Fields has been an astonishing surprise this summer. Selected with the 39th overall pick in the second round, Fields was a shocker to Knick fans everywhere. Most like me, raised an eyebrow and said "Who" when his named was announced. As a New Yorker it wouldn't be absurd for me to automatically declare him a bust and call Donnie Walsh and all of the Knicks management retards but I didn't go about it in that way. I waited and wanted to see what he could do and he stunned the hell out of me and everyone else that watched. His consistency is no doubt the most impressive part of his game. He does it all, he passes, he rebounds, he scores, he gets to the line, he can shoot from anywhere, he simply does it all. He averages 15.6PPG, 4.8RPG and 1.6SPG in 26 minutes per. This coming from a 2nd round unknown prospect was an unexpected delight. We actually could have just nabbed the steal of the 2010 NBA Draft, a stroke of luck that the Knicks rarely ever get a taste of. I would love to see him get some minutes in the NBA to see if he can still keep his game at this level. In my honest opinion, Landry Fields was the best person on our Summer League team. He had something to prove and he did it, he did the hardest thing there is to do... Win over New York Knick fans. Us. Congratulate him!

Andy Rautins

Andy Rautins has struggled, we all know but there is still hope, don't label him a bust just yet. Everyone knows Rautins forte. He's a pure shooter with the nice 3 ball. That's obviously the reason why we drafted the guy, his range is attractive and although he wasn't lights out from behind the ark this summer, there is still room for him to be successful. He's shooting a poor 26% from the 3 which makes people think twice when calling him an "3PT Specialist". Hopefully he can break this cold streak and can redeem himself when training camp comes around. I'm a very firm believer that when surrounded by better talent he will get better shots and will not have to shoot off the dribble as much. With players like Raymond Felton, Amare Stoudemire or Anthony Randolph drawing attention from defenses, Rautins can spot up on the outside and quietly, unknowingly wait for the ball to put up an open 3. If he can find his way into the rotation and we have Rautins and Danilo Gallinari on the outside at the same time we could cause havoc. If he finds his groove both our draft pics can possibly pan out and be successful at what we need them to be successful at. Donnie will look like a genius.

Jerome Jordan

Jerome Jordan has been a mixed bag all summer long. There's been games when he looked lost on offense and defense but there's also been games when he did great running the Pick n Roll and got some blocked shots. Consistency is his worst friend. Every game we see a different Jerome Jordan. Whether it was gonna be a good version or a bad version was always unknown and to be good in this league you have to be consistent at what you do best. He averaged 7 points and 4 rebounds per game but also averaged 6.8 fouls. He even hit the 10 foul limit against the Detroit Pistons in only 21 minutes. Its like he's 2 different people, he could look extremely seasoned while on the court but can also look like a clumsy fool as well. He tends to get to the free throw line often but also tends to watch people put up soft layups right in front of him without giving them any resistance. He needs work on some parts of his game because he is slightly raw, but we need to give him more time then the others. All in all I agree with Donnie Walsh and Mike D'antoni, they believe Jordan will need maybe 2 years of development before he can fully contribute at an high level. He's had his bad games, he's had his good games, lets hope he can become a useful asset and make our team that much bigger.