The New York Knicks will have a pivotal offseason that will be trickier than last year.
They had a sure chance to improve last year with the 4th pick in the NBA Draft and they struck gold with Kristaps Porzingis. However, they still ended up outside of the playoffs and they don't have a draft pick, which makes signing a key piece in free agency an imperative.
New head coach Jeff Hornacek echoed that sentiment and revealed that the Knicks aren't going for small fry to overpay-they want a max deal player. The former Suns coach shared some offseason notes to Adam Zagoria of SNY.
"Oh, absolutely," Hornacek said on pursuing a max player. "I think they've always had that mentality. From the outside the Knicks organization is always a team that they want to get the best team possible. They are willing to spend the money and we want to try to bring a championship to New York. They're going to try."
Hornacek was even specific about the roster build up that they plan to mount.
"I think the backcourt probably needs a little bit of work," he admitted.
While the talk on the Knicks is about the point guard position, the thin market and the low probability of Mike Conley leaving Memphis may merit a change of strategy for New York. Instead of a point guard, they may look towards improving their offense with an athletic shooting guard/swingman.
The team site Daily Knicks suggested DeMar DeRozan of the Toronto Raptors as a possible target. Writer Maxwell Ogden said "DeMar DeRozan is certainly worth evaluating." He came from a winning team and he could bring the culture to a Knicks team that has missed the postseason three consecutive seasons.
However, it would not be easy to pry him away from their Atlantic Division rivals Toronto Raptors. DeRozan has built camaraderie with the team that drafted him in 2009 but nothing can be ruled out at this point.
If DeRozan decides to join the Knicks as the max backcourt player, they would have to look at Carmelo Anthony becoming more of a facilitator. With another proven scorer on the roster, Melo could have more breathing room.
The Knicks landing DeRozan is still a big "If" at this point but they will still get a meeting and Phil Jackson is not the worst at convincing good players to come together.