Brandon Knight 2018-19 thread

[JCSunsfan]

Like it or not, this guy is going to be a big part of the conversation this year. As of this moment, he is the starting pg. So, its worth having a conversation about what he needs to change about his game to be useful in that role and then have a conversation throughout the year about how he is doing at it.

Here is what I believe Knight has to do to be a useful Suns pg.

1. Pass the ball to start the offense. ALL (at least 90%) the time. If he starts making moves or taking shots before other players get a touch, he is fails.
2. Quit taking long 2's.
3. Make quality entry passes to Ayton on a regular basis.
4. Let Booker play hero ball in crunch time.

None of these things are hard. He does not have to learn any new skills. All he has to do is make better choice and easy ones at that.

 

[Ronin]

A leopard cannot change its spots.

 

[BC867]

A leopard cannot change its spots.

And even if he does, is going from piss poor as a Point Guard to mediocre going to get Booker/Ayton and the Suns into the playoffs?

The sooner we get rid of him the better. Whether it is from the roster or the starting lineup.

 

[JCSunsfan]

A leopard cannot change its spots.

Baloney. These things are easily changed. All it takes is BK make a few different choices. I do not know if he will, but he can.

 

[Ronin]

Lol.ok.

 

[Mainstreet]

Perhaps if the Suns were not insistent Knight is a point guard, he might fare better.

The Suns insistence Dragic was a 2 guard got them into trouble as well.

 

[pokerface]

We have to give BK a chance . If he's too stupid to get Ayton the ball on a regular basis then pull the plug .

 

[overseascardfan]

I would say he may be a little old to develop him into a different player but Kokoskov was brought in for his ability to develop players, so TBD.

 

[Chris_Sanders]

Knight had multiple seasons where he shot 42% so above that needs to be a goal. I would like to see a reduction in average shot attempts from his 17.2 with us down to his Milwaukee days of 14.3

So first is less shooting with a higher average. This equates to about 15 points a game.

Second to that he needs to be on the lower side of his career average of 2.7 turnovers per game. So we will go with 2.6, which he has met or been better at multiple times.

Next comes his passing. I expect over 5 a game which he has done 3 times.

Steals over 1 a game. Rebounds about 3 a game (I expect lower than average here due to Ayton and Jackson)

So final stat line of 15/5/3 on 43% shooting.

This is adequate in the NBA and roughly equal to D'Angelo Russel / Jeff Teague

 

[Chaplin]

Let's be clear. There is no good deal the Suns have turned down because they think Knight will be the better option at point guard. It's virtually guaranteed that if the right deal came along for a PG, the Suns would jump on it.

You don't make a deal just to make a deal. It has to be the RIGHT deal and it has to be a GOOD deal. Trading half our team for Tyus Jones is insanity, for example. I know many here like the kid, but is he starter material in our timeline? Who is, realistically? I honestly don't think there are many out there. I had my doubts about Van Fleet as well, even though he was closer to the second coming on this board.

Again, I don't think relying on Knight/Harrison/Okobo in 2018/2019 is that big of a deal. Not with a ton of good Point Guards becoming available next season. Between, Shaq, JJ and Bender, I think Igor will figure out how to get Ayton the ball, and that's if Knight completely flames out.

 

[Phrazbit]

Baloney. These things are easily changed. All it takes is BK make a few different choices. I do not know if he will, but he can.

Guys that play hero ball and have terrible shot selection tend to do that until their roles are mitigated.

 

[Chaplin]

Guys that play hero ball and have terrible shot selection tend to do that until their roles are mitigated.

You mean like being benched and then having an injury and not being considered part of the core?

 

[Phrazbit]

You mean like being benched and then having an injury and not being considered part of the core?

Maybe it'll change him. But I suspect if he's getting 30ish minutes a game we're going to see a lot of the same decision making we remember.

 

[Finito]

I'm rooting for him by all accounts his attitude has changed dramatically.

The better Knight does the better the Suns do we should all be rooting for him

 

[Phrazbit]

I'm rooting for him by all accounts his attitude has changed dramatically.

The better Knight does the better the Suns do we should all be rooting for him

Yeah, I'm absolutely rooting for him. If he really has had an attitude adjustment it's the easiest solution to the PG problem. He's a skilled player, he just makes terrible decisions.

 

[Chaplin]

Yeah, I'm absolutely rooting for him. If he really has had an attitude adjustment it's the easiest solution to the PG problem. He's a skilled player, he just makes terrible decisions.

Think about who his coaches have been throughout his career:

Lawrence Frank
Larry Drew
Jason Kidd
Jeff Hornacek
Earl Watson
Jay Triano (indirectly, never played for him)

Can Igor improve on the coaching he has received throughout his career? I'm hopeful. His best statistical year was under Jason Kidd, so maybe some decent coaching will help him.

 

[Carolinacacti]

so maybe some decent coaching will help him.

I think we will have a lot of moving parts on offense, no more iso ball. Knight will play a part in the clog. I'm rooting for him.

 

[RON_IN_OC]

A leopard cannot change its spots.

Well, maybe someone can take a sharpie and color in the blanks...make him a Puma.

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[SunsFanFirst]

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[Hoop Head]

Perhaps if the Suns were not insistent Knight is a point guard, he might fare better.

The Suns insistence Dragic was a 2 guard got them into trouble as well.

He's been a PG everywhere he's been. If anything the Suns are the first team that tried to make him a SG, not a PG. I don't understand this complaint. We're not asking him to be anything other than a PG right now, which he was in Milwaukee, Detroit, and Kentucky.

 

[JCSunsfan]

He's been a PG everywhere he's been. If anything the Suns are the first team that tried to make him a SG, not a PG. I don't understand this complaint. We're not asking him to be anything other than a PG right, which he was in Milwaukee, Detroit, and Kentucky.

Changing him to shooting guard or scorer off the bench made the problem worse. He then felt free to play hero ball at will because that was his defined role.

 

[Mainstreet]

He's been a PG everywhere he's been. If anything the Suns are the first team that tried to make him a SG, not a PG. I don't understand this complaint. We're not asking him to be anything other than a PG right now, which he was in Milwaukee, Detroit, and Kentucky.

I was not thrilled with Knight's decision making as a starting point guard with the Suns.

The thought occurred to me at times he would do better playing as a combo guard or a 2 guard with play making skills.

Ideally, he would make a nice backup PG but I'm not sure if he would be accepting of that.

 

[BC867]

Perhaps if the Suns were not insistent Knight is a point guard, he might fare better.

What is he then? A Shooting Guard? We already have a pretty good one.

Knight playing backup Shooting Guard? Does he have the skill to be a point-a-minute man?

With some minutes as backup Point Guard? Does he have the skill to be a distributor?

 

[JCSunsfan]

What is he then? A Shooting Guard? We already have a pretty good one.

Knight playing backup Shooting Guard? Does he have the skill to be a point-a-minute man?

With some minutes as backup Point Guard? Does he have the skill to be a distributor?

Yes. He has the physical ability and the skill to do both. We do not need a shooting guard. We need a point guard. The team previously never could make up their mind what they wanted him to be. Tell him he is a scorer to light it up off the bench and then complain that he shoots too much--it's silly.

Tell him he is a point guard. Tell him what you want the point guard to do. We know he can do it if he chooses. If he doesn't do it, yank his butt from the game and play someone else.

 

[devilalum]

Yes. He has the physical ability and the skill to do both. We do not need a shooting guard. We need a point guard. The team previously never could make up their mind what they wanted him to be. Tell him he is a scorer to light it up off the bench and then complain that he shoots too much--it's silly.

Tell him he is a point guard. Tell him what you want the point guard to do. We know he can do it if he chooses. If he doesn't do it, yank his butt from the game and play someone else.

I think there’s only a slim chance that Knight works out but the team is taking the right approach. He really seemed to be suffering from a lack of confidence in addition to other issues before the injury.

If there’s any hope of him being effective he needs to get some confidence back.


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