Sigh.
Just, sigh.
Joakim Noah will be eligible to return from the 20-game suspension levied by the NBA against him last season when the New York Knicks face off against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday. And in order to make room for his arrival, the team is looking to relocate Mindaugas Kuzminskas, according to ESPN.com’s Ian Begley:
Joakim Noah will return from his 20-game suspension for taking a banned substance on Monday against the Cleveland Cavaliers. New York has 15 players on guaranteed contracts, so the club needs to create a roster spot to make room for Noah. That can happen via trade or the release of a player.
Losing Kuzminskas isn’t a huge deal if the Knicks find a taker for his $3 million salary. He isn’t a part of the rotation now, and while he had some electrifying moments last season, a healthy Lance Thomas takes precedence in the wing rotation.
The real annoyance: That the Knicks are here at all, trying to make room for a 32-year-old Noah. The big man is a worker, but he’s also 32 and owed $55.6 million through 2019-20. He doesn’t fit the timeline and will only succeed in taking minutes away from younger players—namely Willy Hernangomez, who remains inexplicably on the outskirts of head coach Jeff Hornacek’s rotation.
That doesn’t look like it’s going to change anytime soon, not with Noah coming back and Kyle O’Quinn balling. It’ll even be interesting to see how Hornacek squeezes in minutes for Noah when only accounting for O’Quinn and Enes Kanter. Thomas’ time could even come down, as he soaks up residual run at the 4.
Some might say this problem is a good one to have. But those people are wrong, verging on irrational. The Knicks have shown they’re committed to featuring Porzingis, which is great. But they must do something to address the frontcourt pileup they’ve assembled. And unfortunately, with Kanter’s and Noah’s deals basically immovable, that might entail moving O’Quinn and/or Hernangomez, the two towers on this roster who make the most sense next to Porzingis.
