Knicks waive Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Myles Powell and Bryce Brown

Your unfounded worry over whether Kevin Knox will be able to carve out a role is over. The Knicks waived the non-existential threat, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, and there was much hand wringing (there was not). Knox went nuclear, or at least hazardous waste-ular, once Immanuel Quickley was handed the baton and started orchestrating. The whole team reacted by moving the ball exuberantly to match his boundless energy. A little bit of shooting at the guard spot gave the whole team a chance to sling the rock and they most certainly slung it.

Myles Powell and Bryce Brown were also given walking papers. Powell was a local kid whereas Brown was college pals with Jared Harper, who remains with the team on a two-way contract. A whirlwind for Brown who was signed only two days ago. This probably isn’t the end of the road for any of these fellers. As with Louis King, who was signed and immediately maligned, these contracts gave the Knicks some bodies for training camp and act as a signing bonus as they migrate some or all of the players to their Westchester club.

The Knicks’ regular season roster is now set, with the full compliment of 15 regulars and a pair of two-way players, Jared Harper and Theo Pinson.

Of course the big interest here is the betrayal of a Kentucky Wildcat! Surely that’s the big story. The gotchya journalist’s razzle with which they intend to dazzle. What were the Knicks thinking; stabbing one of their own in the back!? To wit, does that mean they’d just give anyone with a Wildcat the axe? I wouldn’t be bent out of shape if Julius Randle is next, but I don’t want them to get addicted to dumping ‘Cats, because Quickley is nothing short of a life saving blood transfusion! MKG is merely some iron rich pork and beans.

Tom Thibodeau’s willingness to do something simple and obvious, like roll with the young players who immediately made an impact on the floor, is so bold in comparison to the last several quotidian coaches that I’m not sure if this is a dream or if its, shall we say, not a dream.

Maybe this hardened callous that’s embittered my fandom these past two decades, won’t let me believe that the Knicks have the chutzpah to jettison Elfrid Payton. He still technically does a couple things, but here we are on year seven and the guy has yet to add anything to his game aside from a haircut. Let’s not even get into Dennis Smith Jr’s unfettered fraudulence, but come to think of it, maybe they waived the wrong guys.