One NBA scout believes that the New York Knicks have a perfect fit in Immanuel Quickley, but the team’s sixth man has the potential to be a starting guard elsewhere.
The New York Knicks have been one of the hottest teams in the NBA over the last few weeks. The team recently won nine straight and has scored wins over Eastern Conference powerhouses in the Boston Celtics (twice) and Philadelphia 76ers during this run of strong play.
What has made the Knicks’ play so impressive is it really has been a true team effort. Yes, All-Star Julius Randle and free agent addition Jalen Brunson have been outstanding in leading the way, however, they have also gotten key contributions from several other players on the roster.
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The one that has stood out the most recently is sixth man Immanuel Quickley. The three-year veteran has come up big of late in replacing Brunson while he has missed games due to an injury and was spectacular in dropping 38 on the road against the Celtics last week.
In general, he has taken some nice steps forward in his game in 2022-2023. Yet, his long-term outlook on the roster is as their top reserve player, and not a future starter.
New York Knicks record: 39-28
That is why he garnered interest from around the league ahead of the NBA trade deadline in February. On Thursday, Hoop Hype’s Michael Scotto reported during a recent podcast an interesting piece of intelligence he received from a top NBA scout about how some teams around the league may view the New York Knicks’ sixth man.
“I was talking to an NBA scout who said, ‘IQ has the perfect role there, but could start on a different team if it was constructed differently.’ I think the big elephant in the room here is he’s playing so well that you’re going to have to have real conversations about an extension for him this summer and what that would look like.”
– Michael Scotto
The New York Knicks exercised their option on Immanuel Quickley through next season. He will become a restricted free agent in the summer of 2024, but the team could be forced to offer him an extension well before then if he continues his current play and wins the Sixth Man of the Year award in 2023.