The Knicks have a glut of centers on their roster and this season could go a long way toward figuring out who their big man of the future might be. A solid summer with Spain’s national team has helped 23-year-old Willy Hernangomez shore up his case for the position, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes.
Hernangomez will presumably compete with Enes Kanter for the Knicks’ starting gig but teammates Kyle O’Quinn and Joakim Noah have value in their own ways as well. The Spanish import and close friend of franchise star Kristaps Porzingis, will look to build upon a rookie season in which he averaged 8.2 points and 7.0 boards in just 18.4 minutes per game.
Hernangomez says that he learned a lot from brothers Pau Gasol and Marc Gasol this summer, things that should serve him well as opponents learn more about him after he seemingly came out of nowhere in 2016/17. Whether or not that’s enough to convince the team to commit to him as their center of the future remains to be seen.
There’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- Heading into his fourth season and second with the Nets, second-round pick Spencer Dinwiddie has slowly started to make a name for himself. Brooklyn head coach Kenny Atkinson sees what the guard is capable of and wants to get him more minutes in 2017/18. “As well as he is developing, I’m really excited about him,” Atkinson told Alex Squadron of the New York Post. “I think he’s going to have a really good year.”
- In his first season with the Raptors, G League standout Alfonzo McKinnie has been a revelation, Mike Gardner of the Toronto Sun writes. The forward has shown versatility, length and an ability to knock down three-pointers that the club could use.
- Recently acquired forward Allen Crabbe finally made his debut for the Nets. As Brian Lewis of the New York Post writes, Brooklyn had been looking to bring Crabbe aboard for a while now, stretching all the way back to last offseason.
Celtics need to trade for Willy
Anybody should; Dinwiddie too.