A pair of Knicks bigs have turned heads at EuroBasket 2017 and that bodes well for the future of the franchise. Between Kristaps Porzingis‘ offensive showcase with Latvia and Willy Hernangomez‘s dominance in the post with Spain, New York fans ought to be drooling with anticipation, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes.
Squashing any concerns about a knee bruise that kept Porzingis out of some exhibition games with his national team, the 7’3″ Knicks forward has flaunted his length, range and just about everything else that’s made him such a tantalizing, unique NBA package. Through two games so far, Porzingis has averaged 22.5 points per game.
Hernangomez may not have pumped out any similarly viral highlight reel plays through his first two games in the tournament but the 23-year-old has stepped up as a foundational component of his Spanish team. The 18 points and nine boards he dropped in 20 minutes during the club’s opener is reminiscent of his impressive string of performances for the Knicks in the second half of 2016/17.
Even Knicks forward Mindaugas Kuzminskas, Berman writes, has looked impressive through three EuroBasket games averaging 16.0 points per match.
There’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- The Sixers need to figure out the best way to handle Joel Embiid‘s contract extension – our very own Dana Garauder wrote about it here – but one thing that can’t be overlooked when weighing injury risks and production is the impact that Embiid has on the Sixers brand. “He’s got the public on his side,” a league source told Tom Moore of the Bucks County Courier Times. “[The idea of alienating or losing Embiid altogether] is a public relations nightmare.“
- Between Gordon Hayward leaving money on the table in Utah and Kyrie Irving leaving a team that made three straight Finals appearances, the newest Celtics made big sacrifices to be where they are now. “They were doing what I thought was fair game and very grateful that both of them chose to come here and make those sacrifices,” Danny Ainge told A. Sherrod Blakely of CSN New England.
“The process” is all about Embiid. Sixers have no choice. If he gets hurt everything sixers have done was a waste. They need to sign him. Even a trade would likely not go over well
Embiid hasn’t played a full season of basketball since 2013. Philly buying into the hype are just setting themselves up for disappointment, as is usually the case.
There’s more than Embiid, ton of cap space, and assets. You should research a little before you comment
The Sixers would better serve themselves and their fans by playing the wait and see game. Embiid is a talented young NBA player. His future is bright but not as bright as other young talented players. When healthy he is a game changer but this far into his professional career he has not been healthy and that is a major concern for the Sixers front office and quite frankly, their fan base. Extending a max offer to Embiid, whom has yet to play a full season or even a half a season of basketball, would be detrimental to the organization in the long run. To hammer my point home do you think the Knicks/Cavs should have given D Rose a max contract? The answer is NO! And for good reasons. Rose is one of the best when healthy, key phrase “WHEN HEALTHY”. Same can be said for Embiid, “when healthy”. If Embiid can play a full season or 60 games, then yea, a contract extension talk can be had. But still not for no max or near max contract. If he can stay healthy for two full seasons and he carries the Sixers to the playoffs then a near max contract is a respectable reward. If he can remain healthy for multiple seasons, carry to the playoffs, with an eastern conference finals appearance…then Embiid will be worthy of a max contract. Until then, it’s wait and see.
They have plenty of cap room. The upside is worth the injury risk. If he’s healthy, it’s a no-brainer. If he’s hurt, it’s not franchise-crippling, and that would mean they’d continue picking high in the draft, affording them the opportunity to add young players on cheap contracts. Have to sign him.