Only three players in the NBA have recorded at least 23 steals and nine blocks this season while playing fewer than 405 total minutes.
The Knicks just acquired one of them.
In a three-team deal that sent Jericho Sims to the Milwaukee Bucks as part of the Kyle Kuzma-Khris Middleton swap with the Washington Wizards, the Knicks landed veteran guard Delon Wright, a defensive-minded 6-5 playmaker with a reputation for disrupting passing lanes.
Wright, a nine-year NBA veteran, has long been regarded as one of the league’s premier deflection artists — a skill that’s made him a disruptive force on the defensive end since leading the NBA with 7.1 deflections per 48 minutes during his sophomore season with the Toronto Raptors.
He boasts career averages of 1.2 steals per game, and his presence adds yet another layer of defensive versatility for Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau, who values length and effort on that side of the ball.
Wright’s offensive game, however, has cratered this season.
After signing with the Bucks in free agency, the veteran guard has struggled mightily, averaging just 2.5 points per game on an abysmal 26.8% shooting from the field and 24.5% from three-point range. His free throw percentage has also plummeted to 56.3%, nearly 25 percentage points below his career average.
But Thibodeau believes in regression to the mean, and historically, Wright has been a respectable shooter, owning a career 34.9% clip from deep. If he rediscovers his rhythm, he could provide much-needed depth to a Knicks bench that currently ranks dead last in points per game.
Sims never truly garnered trust from the coaches or his teammates during critical minutes on a championship contender this season. Wright, a veteran who has played on 10 teams, including six playoff contenders, over his nine-year career, should be a player Thibodeau can use if needed in a pinch.
But remains unclear how significant Wright’s role will be. With the Knicks already deploying a three-guard bench rotation locked in with Miles McBride, Cameron Payne, and Landry Shamet, it’s hard to see a pathway to meaningful consistent minutes.
And while Wright brings defensive tenacity, his addition doesn’t necessarily address New York’s most pressing issue: a lack of size on the wings beyond starters OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges.
Josh Hart, a tenacious rebounder, is still just 6-4. Shamet is also 6-4, while Payne (6-3) and McBride (6-1) lack the length needed to defend bigger wings. Precious Achiuwa, while versatile, is not a natural wing defender. Wright is listed at 6-5 but can still be undersized defending his position.
With Mitchell Robinson’s return looming, the frontcourt will receive reinforcements, but the Knicks remain thin at the backup three.
Adding Wright, while solidifying depth, doesn’t alter New York’s immediate rotation. The Knicks swapped Sims for Wright without impacting their hard cap status, remaining $535,301 below the second apron.
They are also ineligible to sign any player in the buyout market whose contract exceeded the $12.8 million non-taxpayer mid-level exception this season.
Barring further moves, the Knicks’ nine-man rotation appears set: Bridges, Anunoby, Hart, Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns are starters. Robinson, McBride and Achiuwa are the best off the bench. Payne, Shamet and Wright are the best remaining players. Until Robinson’s return from injury, rookie Ariel Hukporti will continue to play backup center minutes with Sims landing in Milwaukee. Rookies Pacome Dadiet and Tyler Kolek remain on the outside looking into the rotation.
Wright brings valuable playoff experience, having appeared in six postseasons with the Raptors, Mavericks, Hawks, and Heat — including Toronto’s 2016 Eastern Conference Finals run.
But despite his defensive acumen, it’s difficult to envision him cracking the rotation in a meaningful way, with Thibodeau’s trust in McBride, Payne and Shamet making Wright an insurance policy more than an immediate solution.
Still, the Knicks turned an inactive player into a potential contributor. Sims was buried at the end of the bench, and while Wright may not be a game-changer, he at least provides a skill set that could prove useful in certain matchups.
Yet, New York’s biggest concern remains unaddressed.
The Knicks still need size on the wing, and Wright isn’t the answer to that problem. If anything, Robinson’s return might allow Thibodeau to experiment with bigger lineups, staggering Towns, Achiuwa, Anunoby, Bridges and Hart to better withstand opposing game plans to use size and strength on the wings to their advantage.
Wright adds depth, and the Knicks will take any serviceable players they can get given their airtight cap situation. The playoffs, however, are all about matchups. The wrong matchup can take advantage of a weak spot the Knicks have yet to address for this roster.