New York Knicks 2016-17 NBA Training Camp Roster Rankings

Rooting for a ragtag bunch is a grand sports tradition. And although the 2016-17 New York Knicks are not an underdog, they certainly are ragtag.

On the franchise's 70th birthday, it fits that so many of its new players fervently repeat "I feel great" and "the [insert body part] feels strong" to media. Other newbies are training announcers and teammates on the proper pronunciation of their European names and secretly hoping their success overseas will translate to the NBA. There are draft-day discards trying to fight their way onto their first NBA roster, while others are veteran reserves fighting their way onto their final pro team.

What they all have in common: something to prove.

The new Knicks seem determined to send a message to the teams that let them go, the fans demanding a championship, the Americans wondering who they are, their fellow pro ballers and all the other doubters and haters.   

And for the first time in a long time, I view the 18-man training camp roster with a warm smile, for only one player disappoints me among many I actively wished for.

It's unnerving, this feeling of things going well.

Here are your 18 Knicks at camp, roughly from worst to first. 

The first three are likely headed to the D-League squad in Westchester, as opposed to a spot on the final roster. If I had my druthers, shooting guard Justin Holiday would go to the Westchester Knicks instead, but that's unlikely, since he has a fully guaranteed two-year contract.

18. JP Tokoto

JP Tokoto is a 6'6" high-flying small forward known throughout the D-League for his flashy-yet-effortless dunks. He's also got quick hands that nabbed 1.5 steals per game and a solid jump shot. Despite his highlight-worthy antics with the Oklahoma City Blue last season, Tokoto is unlikely to be called up this year unless there are multiple injuries.   

17. Ron Baker

Ron Baker could be precisely the 3-and-D shooting guard that Justin Holiday isn't. (Holiday has the 3, but not the D.) I selfishly hoped in June that Baker would drop out of the draft, so the Knicks could snatch up the Wichita State graduate. Baker's jump shot isn't beautiful, but it is effective, and he makes up for the lack of style with powerful drives, tenacious D, boundless hustle and bravery in big moments. 

16. Chasson Randle

Two point guards with injury histories top the Knicks depth chart, so having a third, like Chasson Randle, would make New York fans sleep more soundly. While Randle does indeed play the point, what he does best is score...a lot. He holds Stanford University's all-time scoring record and can find the bottom of the net with his eyes closed from any range. He's also got sticky fingers, which he showed off during 2016 Summer League, when he logged six steals to go along with his 24 points versus the L.A. Clippers.

15. Justin Holiday

Holiday came over from the Chicago Bulls in the Derrick Rose trade and is guaranteed a modest $1.96 million over two years. I'm not a fan.

Show him open threes and he'll drill them all night, but show him contested threes...he's less impressive. When facing an All-Star, he'll step up his defense to avoid getting smoked in highlight reels, but on his usual assignments he appears lazy and will greet a pick-and-roll defense with a casual wave to the ball-handler as he slides to the hoop. 

14. Marshall Plumlee

A Duke product who offers rock-solid fundamentals, a powerful build, massive blocks, rim-shaking slams and a grittier game than his NBA-player brothers, Marshall Plumlee is a safe bet for a young backup center. He’s not going to dominate offensively without help, but he’s an intimidating force to stop once he’s near the bucket with the ball in his hands. The partly guaranteed three-year, $2.5 million contract will be money comfortably spent.

13. Lou Amundson

He's a survivor, you've got to give him that. Journeyman power forward Lou Amundson signed a one-year veteran minimum contract last week, meaning he'll actually be with the same team three seasons in a row—a first for him.

Amundson is the best kind of vet reserve: ready to play at any moment, even if he hasn't suited up in weeks. He never fails to add energy and defensive intensity to the squad, and occasionally he'll burst into a scoring spree. When your starting center is coming off an injury, and only two rookies and an inconsistent Kyle O'Quinn back him up, an Amundson isn't a bad thing for head coach Jeff Hornacek to have in his back pocket. 

12. Sasha Vujacic

Often last season, Vujacic was the only medicine that could jolt the sluggish Knicks out of their nightly stupor. Although his shot could be way off—and I mean waaay off—when his stroke was on, it was dead-on, lights-out fabulous. Don't be surprised if Vujacic is Hornacek's first 2 guard off the bench after Courtney Lee, ahead of the younger Holiday.

11. Guillermo "Willy" (pronounced "Billy") Hernangomez

Porzingis' graceful buddy Willy Hernangomez—the Knicks' 2015 Euro-stashed center arriving after a year with Real Madrid—is in some ways the opposite of the bullish Plumlee. The question is, will he play above the rim enough to make it as an NBA center?

For a guy who's 6'11", the rim seems to be rather hard to reach for Hernangomez, who generally flips it up beneath the bucket or tucks in polite little alley-oops. He's simply a different style of big, using dexterity more than power. Will it work against NBA opponents?

It did against Jonas Valanciunas when Spain took on Lithuania in the Rio Olympics. As you can see in the video above, Willy spun and swiveled around the Raptors starter. Whether those maneuvers stand up against the rest of NBA big men remains to be seen, but Hernangomez's contract gives him four years and $5.8 million to prove it.

10. Kyle O'Quinn

O'Quinn is a problem every time I'm called upon to rank players. From night to night he could slide from seven to 12 in a heartbeat, providing a different reason for the rise or fall every time.

In sum: O'Quinn is inconsistent.

At his best, he's a strong pressure defender and an immovable roller with a powerful post game, solid mid-range jumper and occasional three ball. At his worst, he's slow, late and makes bone-headed decisions. It's impossible to know which Kyle O'Quinn you'll see on the court. One thing you can rely on, though: His attitude is always excellent.

9. Maurice Ndour  

Some Knicks fans have been dreaming about Maurice Ndour since 2015 Summer League. I myself was smitten after one monstrous swat—and there are many more killer blocks where that one came from. (You can see six from just one game in the video above.)

Ndour isn’t just a sentinel around the rim: He has an all-around intelligent defensive game and can go on scoring sprees when sneaking in a high-flying slam or a mid-range jumper. The question mark, once again, is about health. The Knicks were outbid for Ndour last summer by the Dallas Mavericks, who cut him after he suffered a "stress reaction" in his left leg, according to The Vertical's Shams Charania. He signed with Madrid in December.

8. Mindaugas Kuzminskas

Mindaugas Kuzminskas may be an unfamiliar name in the U.S., but he's highly decorated—a four-time Lithuanian All-Star and three-time Lithuanian national champion. The small forward is only 6'9", but long; he might just be able to grab the rim from half court.

Kuzminskas can sink lovely little jumpers and floaters from anywhere he wants, and he averaged 12.0 points and 3.4 rebounds on 48.6 percent shooting last season playing for Malaga in Spain. He will also earn the appreciation of New York fans for his toughness; he took rough contact on drives to the hoop at the Rio Olympics, got few calls and made no complaints. 

7. Brandon Jennings

So many of the new Knicks are joining the team with sunny, refreshing attitudes, but none with more adorable humility than Brandon Jennings. Once an electrifying young starter in Milwaukee, then Detroit, Jennings first had a setback after a season-ending Achilles rupture in 2014-15. Then he returned in 2015-16 to find Reggie Jackson filling his shoes. The Pistons traded him to Orlando, where he also played backup.

A disappointing turn of events to say the least, but Jennings—whose career averages are 15.5 points and 5.9 assists—took a teeny-tiny one-year, $5 million deal to come to New York, where he claims to be happy to play backup.

As he told MSG Networks' Rebecca Harlow, "I don't mind coming off the bench behind a guy like Derrick Rose. You know, he's one of the best point guards still in this league, so I can learn a lot from him." 

6. Lance Thomas  

Jennings may earn this spot, but for now Lance Thomas is the sixth man of this team. Thomas doesn’t leap off the stat sheet, but he was a sought-after free agent because he improves his team’s performance every time he steps on the court. Whether it's help defense, rebounds or general hustle, he’s an asset.

Intangibles notwithstanding, Thomas did actually have some sexier showings last year, flashing a 44.2 percent field-goal percentage and one 24-point game. Best yet, he told ESPN.com's Ian Begley, "I don’t want to be a losing Knick. I want to win in New York." 

Courtney Lee is a fabulous 3-and-D man, but he’s much more than that. His first half of last season with the Charlotte Hornets showed how vital he will be as a three-baller and wing for a driving point guard—Kemba Walker and Jeremy Lin were good practice for Rose and Jennings.

Yet his second-half time with the Memphis Grizzlies displayed a wider range skills.

Memphis fans saw Lee free up his teammates with perfectly timed screens and handoffs, make powerful drives to the hoop and calmly sink buckets while under heavy coverage or taking contact. Lee also has a natural instinct for creating fast breaks, so he'll be ready to run when Hornacek pushes the pace. He's also a relentless defender, particularly on the perimeter.

Lee may be the fifth man of my starting five, but he’ll be more than a featured extra in this cast.

How can one put a price on such intensity, inspiration and a gift for trash talking? Even if all he did was sit on the bench in street clothes, Joakim Noah would be worth his weight in platinum (though he's getting paid considerably more than that).

The question is always whether his season-ending shoulder injury (since surgically repaired) will limit his productivity in New York.

His performance in Chicago last year, even before the injury, was a dropoff from his Defensive Player of the Year season of 2013-14. However, his performance was out of character, partly because his assignment was out of character: Fred Hoiberg had him playing off the bench while demanding more offensive production.

Noah's game should be back on course in New York. He'll be a starter, a hustling defender and he'll put his low-post dominance, dexterity and exemplary passing to good use in Hornacek's fast-tempo triangle offense.

As a Knicks writer, my opinions about Rose's basketball performances this season will be separated from my opinions about the rape allegations brought against him. I have access to game footage, but not court documents.

Enough with the cracks about the cracks in Rose’s knees. Aside from a fracture in his face, he had a healthy 2015-16 season, and his performances were often one of the only things the disappointing Chicago Bulls had to celebrate. Although the jungle-cat drives to the hoop aren’t as relentless as a few years ago, Vintage Rose does go on the attack every game. And his court vision is as sharp as ever.

Rose averaged a sparkling 17.4 points on 46.8 percent shooting after the All-Star break, and Hornacek actually used the word "explosive" when discussing him, according to ESPN's Ian Begley:

I think he's getting he's legs back. Just watching him last year when we played them, it didn't look like he was as explosive as maybe he is now.

Although the Knicks have a frustrating history of catching All-Star point guards only after they’re too old and broken-down, don't drop this one-year gamble into that category. Rose is the best PG New York has seen for a long, long time.

The rookie who surpassed every possible expectation in 2015-16 will now be swaddled in the safe embrace of veterans who can further develop his defensive game and run more sophisticated plays.

Kristaps Porzingis developed fast last year, but the weak spots in his game (post-ups and creating shots for himself) will no doubt be smoothed out this year, and the new system will better suit his strengths.  

How will the team use Porzingis? Perfectly, apparently. Per Begley:

Pick-and-roll situations, pick-and-pop, guys are going to expect me to pop, and then I can roll and then switch it up. And it’s going to be really good,” he said, adding that he and Hornacek have talked in detail about the offense. “I’m sure they’re going to put me in a situation where I can be effective for the team.

The pick-and-pop suits Porzingis' sweet jumper, graceful footwork and imposing 7-foot-whatever stature to a T. Expect to see an improved post game this year and for Hornacek to take full advantage of his young big man's dexterity in transition.

I nearly gave the top spot to Porzingis, but I still say this is Melo's team, and so do his new teammates. Rose said, per the New York Post's Marc Berman, "This is his team."

On the court, he had his best all-round season in 2015-16, averaging 21.8 points, 4.2 assists and 7.7 rebounds. On and off the court alike, he has taken on the mantle of leader, undeniably and unapologetically. Whether at the Rio Olympics, the ESPY awards, or in offseason training camps, Melo is now leading in both word and deed, and everyone's taking notice.

The good news: He won't have to carry the load on the court as much as in years past. Last season, he burst into October as a defensive dynamo, inspiring his teammates to equally voracious defensive behavior. The moment his intensity waned, however, the team's D took a nosedive, too.

This season he'll have Courtney Lee and a roaring, snarling Joakim Noah to support him.

With much stronger point guards, Melo will get better looks at the hoop than he's seen in years. Rose himself said, per Berman: "My job is to make his job easy. I’m not coming in for my stats. I don’t care about my stats. As long as we win, I can sleep easy at night."

That should suit Melo (and the rest of us) just fine.