Emmanuel Mudiay is wasting his opportunity with the New York Knicks, according to Al Iannazzone of Newsday. Acquired by the Knicks in a midseason trade with the Denver Nuggets, the former No.7 overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft hasn’t quite established a role with his new team.
Mudiay has seen his minutes decrease over the past few games as head coach Jeff Hornacek begins to give the bulk of playing time at the point guard position to Trey Burke, who has turned his career around in the Big Apple.
Mudiay in Limbo
Iannazzone disclosed that New York front-office hoped a new environment would bode well for Mudiay’s career after losing his starting point guard job to Jamal Murray in Denver. However, after 14 starts, Mudiay remains struggling to make his mark on both ends of the floor and appears falling out of Hornacek’s regular rotation.
The insider revealed the Knicks head coach wasn’t happy with Mudiay’s body language in Friday’s 108-104 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The guard only logged roughly five minutes in the game and seemed frustrated over the limited playing time.
On the other hand, Burke has flourished ever since he joined the Knicks after reaching a buyout agreement with the Washington Wizards. The former Michigan Wolverines standout is averaging 11.1 points and 3.7 assists in 28 games with the Knicks.
He’s expected to play major minutes alongside Frank Ntilikina in the Knicks backcourt for the remainder of the season.
There’s still hope for PG
As for Mudiay, Iannazzone believes it’s too early to give up on the young point guard. The 22-year-old Mudiay is still under contract for the next season with restricted free agency looming in the summer of 2019.
“Bring him off the bench for the rest of the season, see if he can make an impact with the second unit. Work with him in the offseason, let him improve his conditioning and see how he develops,” the NBA scribe stressed in his article on NY Newsday.
More stories out of NY Knicks wire
Kyle O’ Quinn becomes the latest Knicks player to develop a tenuous relationship with Jeff Hornacek. Marc Beerman of the New York Post reported on Sunday that O’Quinn had a verbal spat with the Knicks coach after he was pulled right back to the bench last Friday.
The Knicks big man appeared frustrated over miscommunication on the defensive end of the floor. O’Quinn, who is averaging 6.8 points and 5.8 rebounds in 17.3 minutes per game this season, can opt out of the contract that pays him $4.26 million and becomes an unrestricted free agent this summer.