Felton Looks to Point the Knicks in the Right Direction
Jul 12 2010 9:25PM
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Felton led the North Carolina Tar Heels to the 2005 NCAA National Championship.
MSG Photos
First, he had Steve Nash. Now, Amar’e Stoudemire will once again be teamed up with a top-notch point guard who can run the floor, excel in the pick-and-roll and shoot the ball.
The Knicks found their playmaker to complement Stoudemire’s dominate low-post game when they officially inked unrestricted free agent Raymond Felton to a contract on Monday. Arguably the most talented point guard in this summer’s free agent class, New York believes Felton and Stoudemire could form a dynamic duo in Coach Mike D’Antoni’s run-and-gun system, similar to the Stoudemire-Nash combo in Phoenix.
“With the way Mike plays, you have to have a point guard who can push the ball up the court and you have to have a point guard who start your defense” Knicks president Donnie Walsh said. “I think in Mike’s offense what people don’t look at a lot is the point guard is going to have to be able to score. Raymond can do all those things.”
And the good news is Felton, the fifth overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft, has yet to reach his full potential, despite averaging 13.3 points and 6.4 assists in 399 games, including 369 starts. If you compare Nash’s numbers to Felton’s from the early parts of their careers, Felton is already ahead of the two-time MVP, who didn’t reach is highest potential until he joined D’Antoni and Stoudemire in Phoenix in 2004.
“You can tell (Felton is) going to get better and better,” Walsh said.
It shouldn’t take long for Felton and Stoudemire to get used to playing with each other either. The two players have known each other since high school. But while Stoudemire decided to make the leap to the pros after his senior year, Felton went to the University of North Carolina, where he led the Tar Heels to the national championship in 2005.
“We always talked about playing with each other, but, of course, he went on to the NBA and I went to college,” said Felton, who was teammates with Stoudemire in the 2002 McDonald’s All-American game. “The opportunity to get that relationship back on the court with him should be a lot of fun.”
Felton didn’t make his decision to sign with the Knicks based on Stoudemire choosing to play in New York, but says he’s glad “we both made a decision and the right decision.” Instead, his decision came down to playing for a historic franchise and having the opportunity to play in a fast-paced system that will bring the most out of his game.
“(Coach D’Antoni) gives you that freedom of playing basketball,” Felton said. “Basketball is about instincts. It’s not about structure and being a robot. It’s about running down the court and making plays. That’s what he does. He gives players a great deal of confidence.”
The Knicks have a handful of young players who can blossom playing with Felton and Stoudemire. Wilson Chandler and Danilo Gallinari, considered the cornerstones of the franchise over the previous two seasons, are the two players most likely to thrive playing alongside a great point guard and superstar frontcourt player.
Chandler, who has increased his scoring average by seven points per game to 15.3 since D’Antoni joined the team two seasons ago, was already an excellent finisher at the basket on the fast break and will only get better with Felton running the point. Gallinari, the third-year player who finished second in the league in 3-pointers made last season, could have even more opportunities to find his shot as team’s focus on Stoudemire down low.
And we can’t forget about newcomer Anthony Randolph, who is expected to throw down a handful of alley-oop passes from Felton. Like Stoudemire, Randolph will provide several highlight reels while playing with an elite point guard.
“(I expect) a lot of lobs and exciting dunks, along with Amar’e,” Felton said.
The Knicks found their playmaker to complement Stoudemire’s dominate low-post game when they officially inked unrestricted free agent Raymond Felton to a contract on Monday. Arguably the most talented point guard in this summer’s free agent class, New York believes Felton and Stoudemire could form a dynamic duo in Coach Mike D’Antoni’s run-and-gun system, similar to the Stoudemire-Nash combo in Phoenix.
“With the way Mike plays, you have to have a point guard who can push the ball up the court and you have to have a point guard who start your defense” Knicks president Donnie Walsh said. “I think in Mike’s offense what people don’t look at a lot is the point guard is going to have to be able to score. Raymond can do all those things.”
And the good news is Felton, the fifth overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft, has yet to reach his full potential, despite averaging 13.3 points and 6.4 assists in 399 games, including 369 starts. If you compare Nash’s numbers to Felton’s from the early parts of their careers, Felton is already ahead of the two-time MVP, who didn’t reach is highest potential until he joined D’Antoni and Stoudemire in Phoenix in 2004.
“You can tell (Felton is) going to get better and better,” Walsh said.
It shouldn’t take long for Felton and Stoudemire to get used to playing with each other either. The two players have known each other since high school. But while Stoudemire decided to make the leap to the pros after his senior year, Felton went to the University of North Carolina, where he led the Tar Heels to the national championship in 2005.
“We always talked about playing with each other, but, of course, he went on to the NBA and I went to college,” said Felton, who was teammates with Stoudemire in the 2002 McDonald’s All-American game. “The opportunity to get that relationship back on the court with him should be a lot of fun.”
Felton didn’t make his decision to sign with the Knicks based on Stoudemire choosing to play in New York, but says he’s glad “we both made a decision and the right decision.” Instead, his decision came down to playing for a historic franchise and having the opportunity to play in a fast-paced system that will bring the most out of his game.
“(Coach D’Antoni) gives you that freedom of playing basketball,” Felton said. “Basketball is about instincts. It’s not about structure and being a robot. It’s about running down the court and making plays. That’s what he does. He gives players a great deal of confidence.”
The Knicks have a handful of young players who can blossom playing with Felton and Stoudemire. Wilson Chandler and Danilo Gallinari, considered the cornerstones of the franchise over the previous two seasons, are the two players most likely to thrive playing alongside a great point guard and superstar frontcourt player.
Chandler, who has increased his scoring average by seven points per game to 15.3 since D’Antoni joined the team two seasons ago, was already an excellent finisher at the basket on the fast break and will only get better with Felton running the point. Gallinari, the third-year player who finished second in the league in 3-pointers made last season, could have even more opportunities to find his shot as team’s focus on Stoudemire down low.
And we can’t forget about newcomer Anthony Randolph, who is expected to throw down a handful of alley-oop passes from Felton. Like Stoudemire, Randolph will provide several highlight reels while playing with an elite point guard.
“(I expect) a lot of lobs and exciting dunks, along with Amar’e,” Felton said.
