not only did we make an investment in chandler and STAT with big contracts, but they will be playing more per week than normal. the wear and tear is going to add up for our two bigs, d'antoni has to monitor the minutes well or these guys are going to break down (like STAT did last year).

chandler only played 28 mpg last year and shouldn't go over that this year with the abbreviated schedule.

amare played 37 mpg last year. if you look at his career, amare's best rebounding year (his highest rebound rate) in the last 5 years was also the year he averaged the lowest minutes per game in that stretch, (32 mpg in 06-07). amare grabbed 17% of the rebounds while he was on the floor that year; last year, only 13%. amare is a better rebounder when he has more energy, naturally, which means we are getting a better player for 32 minutes instead of a more tired, energy consuming one over 36.

a game is 48 minutes long, so each position has 48 minutes allocated to it in a game. that means a total of 240 minutes:
TYSON: 28 mpg
STAT: 32 mpg
MELO: 37 mpg (melo's our hourse; career avg 36 mpg and we need to lean on him a little more this year with our offense)
FIELDS: 28 mpg (exactly what he did last year)
DOUGLAS: 33 mpg (what we got from billups post-trade at PG. granted they played together sometimes, but we are gonna lean on douglas too on offense, he needs to go over 30).

then we get to the bench:
JEFFRIES: 22 mpg (used strategically for defensive matchups; i think woodson's gonna find situations where by the end of the year we are gonna be cheering jeffries hustle)
SHUMPERT: 24 mpg (this is hypothetical; who knows what we'll get from iman. i have high hopes)
BIBBY: 20 mpg (what he averaged with the heat last year; don't really think he can play longer than that)

here is where it gets interesting, and where it'd be great to have shawne williams back. at this point there are 224 total minutes, so 16 more minutes on the bench. i assume it'll be between billy walker and shawne williams, with most of it going to williams (if he comes back). if he doesn't, do we give jerome jordan the green light for a few minutes a game? i hope we find out at some point this season what we have from jordan, he could be a huge help up front.

biggest question marks:
A) will d'antoni even go to 8 or 9 guys or is he truly insane?
B) what will we get from shumpert? and how soon?
C) does shawne wiliams come back? (will be answered this week)
D) will jerome jordan be a pleasant surprise up front?

Chandler 30
Amare 32
JJ 13
Jorts 10 minutes (5 center 5 power forward)
Shawnee 17 minutes PF 11 and SF 6
Landry 32 minutes SG
Bibby 16 minutes (10 at pg and 6 at sg)
Iman 21 minutes (6 at pg, 8 shooting guard, 7 sf)

These numbers are based on Shawnee Williams joining the Knicks again this year.

Notes

Depending on Iman's progress, I would think he would get increased minutes at PG as the season goes on. Preparing him to perhaps take over as point guard near the end of the season.

I gave JJ less time, because ultimately I think his inability to score enhances our opponents ability to double team our starts. I am hoping that Iman can get some extra minutes as SF and Jorts can get some extra minutes at PF as a result.

Bibby gets 8 minutes at SG specifically so that Iman can get some regular time at PG.

with Crawford looking like a long shot, I think it's imperative to bring back Shawne Williams as another long range shooter and most importantly, someone who can competently cover Melo and Amar'e when they take their breathers.

fishmike wrote:I dont worry too much.. I feel like MDA has some good pieces who will compete for time. One thing is for sure, while the starting SG spot may be Field's to lose I view him as a less talented player than Shumpert and a defensive liability. He played PF in college and strikes me a guy better suited to come off the bench.

It sounds like MDA wants Douglas to be the PG. Its no secret that while TD can be frustrating at times his hard work and dedication speak for themselves and its clear the coaches appreciate that.

Is Jerome Jordan signed? It seems like Harrelson is ahead of him and might be a more athletic more physical Brian Scalabrine type.

Im pretty happy to start with
Douglas, Fields, Melo, Amare, Chandler
with Bibby, Shumpert and Jorts off the bench.

Im really not concerned with PG on this team. I think we have good role players there that bring different things. Douglas and Shumpert should defend well there and Douglas can go more into a scoring role when Melo or Amare are on the bench.

My big concern is SG, where Fields was destroyed there at times. Its the NBA, you can defend the rim like there is no tomorrow but this is a league where SGs can beat you. I view SG as the spot were we are losing at both ends of the floor. Shump might be a great there... but he's a rookie and unproven.

i agree with shumpert; he could be huge. it will be interesting to see how fields fits in; last year he was great at 2 but apparently he really bulked up this offseason. what is the best place for him to play given melo? they never really jelled post-trade. and fields was abysmal in the playoffs.

BigSm00th wrote:

VCoug wrote:I'm just hoping we can get 10-15 min/game combined from Jerome Jordan and Jorts.

exactly. you figure chandler's playing 28-30 minutes a night all at C, so knicks are left with 18-20 minutes. if we can get 10-15 from jordan/JORTS, that means only for a minute or two do we need to play STAT or jeffries out of position. would really be a huge plus. 10-15 from combined jordan, jorts, and this hunter guy.

Yep, and it's not like they have to be great out there. If we get Chris Dudley level production out of these two next year I'll be very happy.

especially with Walker hurt, and Williams gone, its almost a sign that Green is here at least for another short term contract.
With Hunter being our only true PF/C, i think he will stay as well.
He looks pretty solid to me.
Jorts I am not sure if he can play PF, he doesn't seem to fast or athletic.
Jordan just doesn't seem strong enough either.
I think they will give us minutes if they progress halfway through.
But with the love of Dantoni for JJ, he probably will get at least some minutes.
Probably way more than we would like as well.
With so many back to back games, I would look for a deeper bench than the standard Dantoni, at the very least, on certain days.
And hopefully on days in which we can afford to have our starters probably sit for once.