The New York Knicks have stuck with the same backcourt to start the season, but the question is whether or not they should. With Arron Afflalo still out with a hamstring injury, Sasha Vujacic is getting the shooting guard start while Jose Calderon is the starting point guard. That has been ok for the Knicks, but Langston Galloway and Jerian Grant have been the real stars, outscoring the starters so far this season. Could head coach Derek Fisher change things up in the coming games?
According to Ian Begley of ESPN.com, when Grant and Galloway are on the court, the Knicks are outscoring opponents 20.5 points per 36 minutes of play. However, when Calderon and Vujacic are on the court, the Knicks are getting outscored 12.1 points per 36 minutes. Those are big differences in numbers and with Afflalo not expected back soon, Fisher could try some lineup changes. According to the head coach, he has not overly worried.
"It's always interesting to see how quickly things change where [Wednesday] night everything was great and the sun was up and now all of a sudden, there's no sun because we lost," Fisher said, via ESPN.com. "That's the mentality that we have to get out of in this organization. Everybody. You can't go up and down with the sun and the moon one day at a time."
The Knicks would like to stick with Calderon as their starter. The point guard has had his future put into question several times, but the Knicks have not made any moves and want their contract with the veteran to work out. However, it will be hard for Fisher to ignore what Galloway and Grant are doing with the reserve team and what they could be doing with the starters.
"We got to get better, for sure," Calderon said, via ESPN.com. "I think we were OK at the beginning [against Atlanta], better than we were [against Milwaukee]. ... It's going to happen, some good and bad."
Things could change for the better when Afflalo is healthy. The shooting guard told the New York Post he predicted he would miss about two weeks with the injury. He could be what helps Calderon play better. However, if the veteran point guard does not improve, he could either be moved to the bench or sent away altogether. Right now, Calderon is really struggling to start the year while players like Derrick Williams and Kristaps Porzingis are getting off to fast starts. Already on thin ice, Calderon must jump past the two younger players.
