Knicks’ Summer League Breakdown | NY Got Game

Knicks’ Summer League Breakdown | NY Got Game

Welcome to New York Got Game. All right, we’re back with another edition of New York Got Game. It’s summertime. Summer league action has started for the Knicks. We’re going to talk about that. And recently this week, we saw the Knicks introduce their new head coach, Mike Brown. He had a press conference that was pretty interesting. So, on today’s show, we’re going to talk a little bit about Mike Brown and the future for the Knicks along with summer league, what we’ve seen so far in summer league and all the thoughts about the young players as they try to develop. Got a special guest, so let’s get right to it. The Knicks are heating up. Okay, so the Knicks, they’ve wrapped up their first two games of the 2025 Las Vegas Summer League, and there’s plenty to talk about when it comes to the team’s young talent. from Pakome’s Dier’s promising first game to Tyler Klex early growing pains to a few sleeper names that are trying to earn a roster spot. So, we’re going to break it all down and joining me to do just that is the host of the Off the Ball podcast. He’s also a contributor to Nicks Fan TV. My guy Chris Lebron joins me now. Chris, what’s going on, man? How you doing? Hey, Dex. What’s going on, man? Happy to be on. Oh, glad to have you here, man. It is summer. We’re actually still talking Knicks basketball. We’re talking about summer league basketball. Some people take summer league basketball seriously. Some people don’t care about the wins and losses. Some people look at the development. There’s a lot to talk about, but Chris, let’s do this. Let’s start with PCOM Dier because I thought he was a clear bright spot in game one and there was not a lot that was great in that game for the Knicks in that loss to Detroit. He showed some poise, shooting touch, some of the two-way potential. What impressed you most about his summer league opener performance and how do you see his game translating to next season if he can get some rotation minutes? I I just liked his confidence. He he was real confident, real aggressive, and that’s what you want to see with him because that’s that’s something with him that we, you know, in the pre-draft process is, you know, will he be aggressive enough because he has all the tools to be, you know, what you want in a modern day wing. So, I really liked his aggressiveness. There’s still some things defensively that still need some work and even with the shot. But I like the shot mechanics. Like the mechanics are all there. It just, you know, we just got to see it go down a little bit more. But with the the defense, there’s his it’s like his on ball defense is good, but then he gets blown past a lot. So, but I just like that he’s being more aggressive when he gets the ball. He’s trying to create more when he gets to the bucket, finishing with the left, finishing with the right, being more creative around the rim. I Those are the things I’ve liked about him so far. in summer league. Yeah, you got to like what you’ve seen from him thus far in summer league. I thought he’s been good. We saw him get injured in the second game against the Celtics. So, still don’t have an update on him and we’ll see how he is or if he plays throughout the rest of summer league. But I want to talk about Tyler Cole as well too, Nick’s second round pick from last year. Point guard, he struggled to take care of the ball in the Knicks game on Friday against Detroit. He had five of the team 16 turnovers. What have you made of his play through the first two games? because he also didn’t shoot the ball well against the Celtics in game number two. And how important is summer league for him particularly to earn minutes next season at the backup point guard spot if that is a role for him? Dex, this one hurts. This one hurts. Uh oh. Oh no. We talked about it on my pod. I think he’s the most important figure in summer league. I think he has the most important role as being the backup to potentially Jaylen Brunson. And we know how crucial those minutes can be. The first game I I actually didn’t think he was it was as bad as the stat line showed cuz I thought he was really aggressive. Like yeah, he had some really bad turnovers, but I thought he was aggressive. He he some good things defensively and uh even though the shot wasn’t going down, I just like the way he was playing. He was very active, you know, getting to spots. I liked it. Game two today, not not so much against Boston. it it just felt like he was never comfortable. Walsh and and um Wong were really just giving him fits and he just never got comfortable. And you know, he he probably would have had a lot more. I think he only got four assists today, but he would have had a lot more. I just guys weren’t hitting shots. They they think the Knicks shot 13% from three. So guys weren’t hitting shots. He couldn’t get to a spot and he just didn’t feel comfortable at all today. So, his struggles are it it it sucks because I I was I was bit I’m really high on him and for him to to not have the offensive output that you really need and and we talked about this like they’re they’re potentially trying to maybe get another lead guard and he was you know he’s in position to to be like no you don’t need to get another guy I’m the guy you know the backup that can play 10 15 minutes if you’re comfortable with and he as of now I don’t know if the Knicks feel comfortable with him being that guy. Like he he has shown some good things, you know, the flashiness with the play making, but today was it wasn’t good, Dex. It wasn’t good. I wouldn’t I didn’t feel good as a as a Cole fan and someone who was really hired him in the pre-draft process. Today was very disappointing. Yeah, it’s it’s really hard. You know, look, all this stuff we’re talking about this, having discussion, but summer league is so hard to really put into one game, right? But I think you did want to see, and when I was on your show recently, we talked about this. I think you would have liked to seen particularly him and Dier come in and sort of take it by the horn, show that they can dominate uh at some level. You want to see him, particularly Cole, be a little bit more aggressive with his shot. Look, the shot didn’t fall. I think you make a good point. He could have had more assists in the game against the Celtics, but this is not a good shooting Nick summer league team. They do not have a lot of shooting on this team. So, you’re seeing a lot of bricks. That can be frustrating, too, along with the turnovers. But, you know, we were looking at highlights while you were talking of him from last year where he looked very much in command of the game where he played well in the flow of the game. So, you know, the talent is there. I think for these secondyear players, you want to see a little bit more. So, not a good start to summer league for Tyler Kak, but it’s not over. doesn’t mean he may still have some more chances, three more games, he can still show his value. But I do think the Knicks brass, as you mentioned, they’re looking very closely at this, Chris, in terms of determining whether they need to sign another ball handler with the veterans minimum. So, we’ll see what they do there. We’ll get to more of that later. But Ariel Happort, other second round pick from last year, like Cole, very underwhelming in his first summer league game against the Pistons, but more of a presence against the Celtics, especially on the glass. What do you think the big man needs to show this summer in Vegas? And do you think he could be a viable option to be the backup center, especially if Mike Brown goes with the double bigs in the starting lineup? Yeah, like I said, he wasn’t impressive in the first game, but the second game just real active on the boards. I think he had 13 rebounds and shown, you know, another thing that he needed to work on is the shot blocking. and he had a couple he had like two or three blocks today, but he’s still there’s still moments where defensively he’s letting guys get into him his body and he guys are getting guys who shouldn’t be getting buckets on him are getting buckets of and that’s the one thing he needs to improve if he wants to be a viable back because remember Mitchell Robinson is isn’t expiring so you know and there’s always rumors about you know him so you know he can you know if they if he wants to be able to get that trust from them he’s got to show more stuff on the defensive end but what I did like today is He’s very active vocally, defensively. He’s showing some leadership qualities, too, which I really like. Um developing a little bit of like a little bit of that Hardenstein type of game, you know, that you saw a little bit of it today, which I like. So, it was a definitely a big plus today than from the first game um from Huck. Yeah, he liked to saw from Huck. Showed some improvement there. Still got a ways to go, but the Knicks are high on his potential as a big man there. I think when you talk about the second game against the Celtics, second round pick in last year’s draft, the last second round, not the last second round pick, it was hot, but for him, Kevin McCull Jr., he was the bright spot in this game uh against the Celtics for the Knicks. What do you like about McCull Jr’s game? And do you think he could find his way onto the Knicks roster next season? Because he was very aggressive and I liked what I saw out of him. We talked about on my pod like I think a big part of his potential of being on the team was be the outside shooting. Now, he didn’t he hasn’t shot no none of the Knicks have shot the ball well from outside, but he he took the game in his hand and said, “You know what? The shot’s not going down. I’m going to attack.” And that’s what he did really well, especially today. Did some good Friday, but today against Boston, he really showed out and really got to his spots and really attacked and really showed that he can finish, you know, with the best of them. You know, reverse layups both with both hands. He really showed out and got to his spot. So that was really impressive with him. You know, last year not being healthy, you know, we really didn’t get to see a lot of him, especially, but he really showed that, okay, the game’s not going our way. We’re not hitting shots, but I’m going to attack attack and and that’s what he did. And he also went to the free throw line, nine to 10 from the free throw from from the charity stripe. So, he did a lot of good things even though the shot wasn’t going down, be able to attack and hit all spots and and against some good defenders. Jordan Walsh, good defender. Isaiah Wong, good, solid defenders, you know, and was able to do some really good things. So, if the shot’s not going down, you got to be able to show that you could do other things and that’s what he showed. So, I was really impressed with this and performance. Yeah. Again, see if he can string it together in a couple more games with a very impressive showing for him against the Celtics. What have you made, Chris, of the Knicks lone draft pick this year, Mohhamd against the Celtics? We saw him, you know, they had the ball in his hands a couple of times initiating the offense. He’s also we saw him be able to get past guys with his length. You know that he’s a project, but what kind of player do you think he could be for the Knicks down the road? You know, it’s crazy. I I remember seeing some stuff from him from overseas and the offense wasn’t there, but the fact that we saw him and he’s bringing the ball up and effective and he’s getting past guys and he’s, you know, the handles it’s a little sloppy, you know, but, you know, I’m not going to expect too much, you know, from a first year guy, but very impressive, very his confidence is very high, you know, and able to be creative to get, you know, take dudes off the dribble for a guy that size. It’s like, okay, the offense was something that, you know, was a big question mark for him. We, you know, if you, anyone scouting with him was like, all right, the defense is there. He plays the passing lanes good. He’s got the wingspan. He’s got the size, but the offense was the question mark. And like I was actually like, oh, I actually like the offense more than I like the defense so far in these first two games. So, he really impressed me, you know, um, with his offensive creativity. I didn’t expect that. So, you know, I think there’s something that I don’t know if he’s going to ever develop the outside shot, but the fact that I saw him with the ball in his hand and be creative and and have some good passes on on the po in the post, like, especially in the f first game where he had Lucasuka, you know, got him for the for the dunk or in in the first game. So, he impressed me. I I didn’t expect much from him, but especially offensively, and I actually came away very impressed with him. Yeah. I wonder what he can do offensively, what the ceiling could be for him because he can definitely get past guys. I know it’s again, it’s summer league. He’s not going up against the best in the NBA in terms of defense, but he does have an ability to get past guys and didn’t look totally unsure once he did get past those guys. So, I’m intrigued to see how he plays through the rest of summer league. Now, Chris, coming into summer league, which good player, and that could be Mohamd Diara that isn’t guaranteed to have a roster spot. This could also be Kevin McCull Jr. intrigues you the most as a player who can actually challenge for a roster spot. So before these two games, who was that player for you? It was Kevin McCull. And obviously when we mentioned before we talking about the shooting, but the fact that he’s impressed with just getting attacking attacking the rim like we need more stuff like that. We especially in Mike Brown’s offense where there’s you see going to you see a lot of motion, a lot of cutting. He that’s that fits perfect in in Mike Brown’s offense. So he he fits this mold. Yes, I was, you know, when I thought about McCullers and what he you know what he needs to do to make the team. I was the outside shooting, but you know, Mike Brown, like I mentioned, Mike Brown likes guys who cut and stuff and and McCull this might fit perfect. You know, he might be that a piece off the bench that fits really well. So Kevin McCuller to me, you know, I was really unsure, you know, if the shot will be there and it can make the team, but you know, with this with this and with the performance he had against the Celtics, he he might have gotten him the spot potentially. So, and I think he he might fit perfectly, you know, with like I said, with the way Mike Brown runs his his offense and and the cutting, he he might have just gotten, you know, this game might have been the one that gets him on the team. All right. It’ll be interesting to see if he does get on the team. He does have some upside there. There was a lot of talk about his offensive game coming out of Kansas. Injuries obviously set him back and last year didn’t get to play that much. Just 13 games with the Westchester Knicks. So, we’ll see if he’s able to take advantage of this opportunity in Vegas. But when we talk about Vegas, Chris, and you talked about it before, I saw how down you were about Tyler Kak’s performance, right? Not a good one. How much stock I know it’s still bothering you. I know. How much stock should Knicks fans put into summer league performances? And which of these young guys, because you said you thought McCulla has a chance to make the roster, but which of these young guys has the best chance to impact the big league roster this coming season? Summer league’s always tough, right? It’s always tough because, you know, you you’re you have guys going against a lot of guys who quite frankly aren’t going to be playing, you know, even in the G- League or or whatever. You know, these a lot of these guys going to be playing overseas. So, it’s hard to really dictate, but you want to see them play well, right? Like regardless, you still want to see good performances. So that’s probably the disappointment that sticks fans are going to have with co league is like okay you don’t want to put too much stock into summer league but we want to see you actually like show that okay I belong you and with this game in particular you’re not you don’t you’re going to get that but and he was the one where I thought I I was really confident that he would be the guy the most impactful um but you know I think Ariel’s the one that I think is going to make the most impact you know I think because you know Mike Brown likes to play those two big lineups and I think he’s going to be very important. I think his game like I don’t know if there’s much ceiling with Huck, you know, but I think the floor is really high and I think he could be a really solid piece where if Mitch, you know, Mitch has had his injury history and he’s probably going to miss some games. Let’s be real. He probably going to miss some games, Mitch. So, we need to have that trust. And I think just just of watching so far, I I’m pretty comfortable with Huck and and him playing, you know, 10 10 12 minutes, I feel real confident that he’s going to be solid in his minutes and maybe give a little bit more offensive upside. But, you know, I I feel confident with with Huck, you know, getting real minutes. But Tyler Kohlick, I I was I was I was very confident that he would take take the realm and be like, “All right, that’s our backup point guard. We not thinking about any other point guards. Maybe we’ll just bring someone in. But like we mentioned on my pod, maybe we’ll just bring it in. But with the understanding like, hey, you probably not going to get minutes, but you know, if you’re cool with that, you know, but now it’s like, well, maybe we actually need someone to actually play minutes because we might not feel comfortable putting Tyler in there. But also I think with this the lack of spacing and you know this team this this roster summer league roster not ex fitting what Tyler does well right which know playing in space and so maybe we you know we’re reading too much into it but you know you know you still wanted Tyler to show that he you know has that next step. So hopefully you know they improve the spacing. I don’t know how much we’ll see that, but you know, it definitely I know there’s a lot of Knicks fans that are not happy with Mr. Cole’s performance these these first two games. Yeah. And and look, I I’ve seen it. I’ve seen it on social. Oh, yeah. If you’re I turned onations. I had I couldn’t look. Look, if you’re if you’re crashing out over summer league, you’re doing too much. Okay. You can’t be crashing out over summer league. It it it’s it it’s it’s it’s too much. I’m with you. You’d like to see Kick do a little bit more. There’s still also three games to go. If Kolk is if KO starts killing it in the next three games and everybody’s going to be back on the Kick train. You gota you got to relax. It’s it’s summer league. Can’t crash out over summer league. All right, let’s let’s get off summer league for a little bit. Couple more things for you, Chris. What have you made of the two signings that the Knicks made this off season? Adding Jordan Clarkson and Gershon Yabiscelli. What What have you made of those two signings? Do you like them? Do you think it really helps improve the bench? Yeah. starting with Jordan Clarkson. I mean, just the value like to get him for a vet, you know, obviously he was waved by by Utah. And listen, you’re going to get a player who can score, right? An absolute bucket. And we needed that. That’s an upgrade over campaign. That’s a that’s an upgrade over Landry Shamut. He’s not perfect defensively. He’s not great, you know? He’s he’s not so don’t expect anything there. and you know he’s not the most efficient player but he was also playing for a team that was quite frankly they were trying to tank you know so you figure maybe a better situ a winning environment which he feels like he hasn’t been in a winning environment in in a little bit that uh he’ll play more winning basketball so you expect the efficiency numbers to be a lot better than they were maybe the the the I think he averaged like 16 a game you know for Utah but you know he only played like half the games last year which I mean they were telling guys to not play which is crazy too So, you know, you just feel like he’s going to be in a better environment, so he’ll play more efficient basketball and, you know, have a dynamic player like that off the bench. Just that signing alone would have been good. Then we get, you know, Gershon Yabelli. And I didn’t even have him, you know, as a thought process for the Knicks. I thought maybe he was going to get, you know, a lot more 12 to 14 per, you know, from a team from a team. And to get him for what we got, you know, to get a guy who’s strong, 6’8, can shoot the three ball well, you know, and just keeps has gotten better. And like the fact that, you know, his story too is good. You know, he spent, you know, it was like a huge gap in his playing career where he, you know, he he didn’t play in the NBA and then to come back and and to to to be as effective as he’s been, you know, as a pro and, you know, we saw he did with in in the in FIA, you know. So, I I like the value of these guys. We listen, we didn’t have much, we don’t have a lot of money to work with, but to get the value and the the players we got for for the for as little as we got them for, I think that’s really impressive. what they were able to get and it automatically bolsters our bench and makes it better than it was last year. So, I think these are really two solid pickups for the New York Knicks. Yeah, man. I like the I like the signings a lot for the Knicks. I think it really helps improve their bench. You know, they needed the bench scoring. You saw it as a problem in the playoffs. You think that new head coach Mike Brown is going to play more guys off the bench. That’s at least what we expect to see. So, we’ll see what goes on with that. That kind of ties me into where I want to go next because with the new head coach here, what are you most intrigued to see about how new head coach Mike Brown can impact this team next season? What intrigues you the most with him next? He’s going to run offense. Oh, you’re going to see you’re going to see a modern offense now. That’s what excites you. A modern offense. Going to see a mo and I’m a and I’m I am a Tibs guy. I I was probably one of the few people who would actually defend Tibs. But, you know, I I I understand the pivot. I really and except we mentioned on my show I understand why they pivoted from Tibido like they felt like there was a ceiling and they needed just to change it and needed a new philosophy on offense and I really dove in into Mike Brown’s offense and what he did and and I just got really excited when we saw that some of the hires and I know a lot of people on socials and like friends texted me a Mike Brown I don’t like it. I was like and I would be like hold up let me try to explain to you like why this is actually a solid hire and like I just like the way his offensive sets are. I love the constant motion, the constant, you know, guys cutting that what he likes to do on the on the pinch post with his bigs. You know, I just feel like we’re going to get more from OG and male. Like male should be absolutely, you know, thrilled with Mike Brown. So, I think he opens up the offense. I think he’s going to expand obviously the bench, you know, so and he he just brings a lot of enthusiasm. obviously has a defensive background, but you know, the offenses, you know, have been a lot better throughout the year, especially in sack, you know, had a top five, 10 10 offenses his couple years there. So, I just feel like the expanding of the offense is just we’re going to see, you know, the offense just be so much more fluid, so much more cuts, so you know, a lot more motion, a lot more guys slashing. I I’m just really excited what Mike Brown brings offensively. you know, kind of when we had Tibs, it was just kind of like high pick and roll and cat and Brunson do your thing. And I think I think this will help Brunson too. Yes, Brun. Well, Brunson does with the ball in his hand is is magic. You know, it’s make what makes him special. But, you know, there is times, hey, we need to see how you could do off ball. You know, you don’t need the ball in your hands. Try to be a little more creative. Try to get you more, you know, um more more screen so we can get you open on on without the ball. So, I’m excited for what Mike Brown, you know, does. He he feels like he wants to be there. I feel like he’s going to handle the media well. I don’t I think that was a a concern with some people. So, I really like what Mike Brown’s going to bring here in New York. Established he’s he’s Kobe LeBron. He he knows how to deal with personality. So, I I may at one a moment I was like, how would he handle New York? But I was like, you know what? Nah, I that was that was just like a moment. I was like, no, I actually think he’ll he’ll be fine and he’ll handle it well. And so I’m I’m excited about I know people like it’s not a sexy hire, but you know that’s we just need we needed a guy who felt like we could take us to that next step especially with the way the Eastern Conference is now. Dex, it’s wide open. It’s theirs. So we had to make this move. You know, we mentioned Toronto has done this before. The Warriors have done this before and it worked. So hopefully we we we uh you know, we have the same success that those teams had and uh we could we could capture something. But yeah, I’m excited about Mike Brown being here in New York. Yeah, I was saying when I was on your show the other day, I was making sort of a comparison with the Yankees in 95 and them going from Buck Sho Walter to Joe Tori just to take it to another sport. And sometimes you might just need another voice. And just to be clear, like I said on your show, just to let the people know, I am not saying that the Yankees are going to, excuse me, the Knicks are going to win four championships like the Yankees. I’m not saying that Mike Brown is the next Joe Tori. Not my point. Just saying sometimes you need another voice to at least try to get you to where you want to go because the voice that you had there before could have been a little bit stale. Sometimes you just need some new offensive ideas. Sometimes it’s sometimes the changes are as I don’t want to say minor because it can be major but they’re as small as that. And you know you see how you are change is hard. I get that. But sometimes it’s necessary. Sometimes it is necessary just like life right? Sometimes you just got to life decisions. And and I think this is what Tibs did for us and and to bring us to the conference finals for the first time since 2000 like all those things are great and a lot of people are like how do you fire a coach that just did that but it’s like you know there there’s they felt like there was a ceiling and when you have a win now team listen all our our core our bane guys are they’re all in their late 20s you know maybe 30 early 30s so the opportunity to uh to that that that window is small and we’ve seen it especially with the apron stuff decks that window is way used to be used to have like four to five year window. Now it’s like two to three year window if so the opport the the chance to to do it now is you know we got to capitalize on it now. So you know they had they had to make that move and they’re in win now mode like they they weren’t going to try to get a a brand new coach or an unexperienced you know assistant coach. They were like no we’re in win now mode. So, you know, I’m I’m like I said, it’s not a it’s not going to wow you the the the coaching hire, but I I out of the all the candidates that were that were uh you know, available, I I think I think they made the right move. I agree. I I happen to agree. We’ll see how it all plays out. Now, you mentioned this just a little bit ago, the Knicks, they could still sign another player to a veteran minimum contract. Who do you think the Knicks should sign to the Vetman if you would spend the money on that final roster spot potentially for them? Who do you think the Knicks should sign with the veteran minimum money they have available? I mean, they they could go a bunch of ways. You know, do they get another big? Do they get another guard? You know, do they try to get a wing? Obviously, the market is still, you know, there’s not a lot of guys out there. You know, you you’re kind of scouring through other teams seeing who gets bought out. And obviously like a Marcus Spart has been, you know, a name that potentially if he gets bought out will get brought in, you know, and obviously Kohic’s ineffectiveness so far can maybe, you know, they’re they’re trying to see, you know, scour the point guard market. Like I said, there’s not a lot out there. So I think Marcus Smart would be a a nice addition. You know, obviously he’s he’s a little bit long in the tooth. He’s not the same Marcus Smart he was in in Boston when he was defensive player of the year and hitting big shots for them. So I mean, but that would be intriguing. Like I said, it’s you can’t, you know, we we only have so much money, so we got to try to find guys like that, you know, buyout guys. So, I mean, I would bring him in. I think he would he would bring a lot added toughness. You know, we can always use some more toughness on this team. So, that would be a name that I would be intrigued with if if he becomes available. Last thing for me here, Chris. So, after this off seasonason and watching two summer league games uh for you, what are the vibes for you right now with this team? And what’s your expectation for how this team could do next season, 2025, 2026 NBA season? Are the vibes good for you right now? Are you excited about the team next season? And what do you think this team could do in the upcoming season? despite the the disappointment of the summer league game, then I’m probably gonna have trouble sleeping tonight. No, come on. Come on now. Come on. No, no, no. We’ll go that way. I’m I’m over it already. But, um, I’m still I still feel good. I still feel good about the young guys, you know, despite the struggles of these first two games. I I still feel good. You know, obviously McCull show some things. Obviously, Kick did not have a great game, too, but I still feel like there’s, you know, his aggressiveness from first game. I think that’s where we’re going to see moving forward. You know, his playmaking is still at a a high level. Huck is doing, you know, Huck is going to be solid, you know. So, I feel good. I feel good about the two pickups. You know, maybe we got a hidden gem in Diwara, you know, um, you know, seeing what he did, you know, obviously what we have with the starters and JB and and Cat and MueL and OG Hart, you know, adding, you know, Mike Brown. Like I know a lot of people were trying to think, oh, should we make a big move to get KD Giannis, you know, maybe the big move was, you know, you know, pivoting from from Tom to get Mike Brown. So, I feel good. I I’m excited. I’m excited. You know, I’m excited about this season. You know, it’s theirs. The the the to get to the finals is for the taking. Like, we we have a we I thought this year’s path was was a wide openen path, but next year’s is just is even more wide open. you know, you have the Cavs who are going to be there. Obviously, Detroit gave us a run for our money in that first round series. Uh, you know, so there’s some other teams. Orlando picked up, you know, uh, you know, some good players, you know, resigned Paulo to a to a max deal. So, they got some, you know, they got something there potentially. You know, Chicago might be there. So, look, I feel good, Dex. I really do feel good. Like, I’m excited. I wish the season would start already. I can’t wait for October. That’s why I’m getting so geeked up about summer league, you know, because it gives us, you know, gives us a little bit feel about what to expect for 25 26. So, I’m excited. You know, this is an opportunity. You know, these last few years have been real good, you know, you compared to pre, you know, uh, 2020 when, you know, it felt like it really felt like it was it was embarrassing to be a fan of the Knicks. And now we’re at a point where we’re in we’re favorites to come out of the East and you know so I’m excited. You know there’s nervous you know you like because you know health is you know you always worry about health the healthiest team you know you worry about that but obviously that’s not your control but I’m excited Dex I really am. I I still feel confident about the young guys despite what that. So, you know, I still feel like they’ll uh you know, they’ll have uh you know, with with playing with better players, NBA player, I think they’ll they’ll be better in a better situation. So, I feel good about the young guys. Feel good about the core coach. I feel good overall. Dex. All right. He’s feeling good. Chris LeBron off the ball podcast also contributor Nicks Fan TV. He’s feeling good about it. Look, summer league is early. You’re not crashing out, Chris. The people out there don’t need to be crashing out as well. We’ll see how the young players play through the rest of these games. There’s still some time and you said you can’t wait. Before you know it, it’ll be training camp and we’ll be ready to talk plenty of Knicks basketball next season where there’ll be a lot of pressure on the team, but this is what you got to love. Chris, I appreciate you, man, for coming through on New York game for the first time. We will do this again soon. Thank you, my friend, and uh talk to you soon. Thank you for having me. Okay, we’ll see what the Knicks do with the rest of their summer league games and how their players develop. As far as the Liberty, they’ve got one more game before their All-Star break next weekend where we’ll see Sabrina Nescue and Briana Stewart compete in that one. Huge game on Wednesday at the Barlay Center. Liberty continuing their eightgame home stand as they’ll welcome Caitlyn Clark and the Indiana Fever. Liberty picking up a big win on Sunday over the Atlanta Dream. 14-6 on the season. So just almost at the halfway mark of the season through 20 games and Liberty are still three games behind the Minnesota Links for the top spot in the W. They’ll continue their play of their eightgame home stand. And coming right back after the All-Star break, they’ll see Caitlyn Clark and the Fever again come to the Barclay Center. So, interesting times for the New York Liberty as they’re starting to play a little bit better basketball and get healthier and look like the championship team that we know that they are. That’s going to do it for this edition of New York Gang. Got to thank the people that make this show look wonderful. Producer Eric Herblanc, associate producer Nick Federico, editor Corey Pter, and production assistant Tommy Cohen. I’m Dexter Henry. We’ll be back next week with some more New York basketball talk here on New York Game. Thanks for watching New York Gut Game.

Dexter Henry is joined by ‘Off The Ball Podcast’ host, Chris Lebron to break down the Knicks’ young core after their first two games in Las Vegas.

They discuss which players have stood out, the ones who have underwhelmed, and which players could earn a spot on the main roster for the 2025-26 season.

Plus, they discuss their thoughts on Ariel Hukporti, the Knicks’ recent signings of Jordan Clarkson and Guerschon Yabusele, and Mike Brown’s early impact on the team.

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