With the New York Knicks riding hot on a six-game winning streak, it has been difficult to notice the pieces on the team that are struggling, but unfortunately sixth man Immanuel Quickley is one of those pieces.
In Friday’s 114-91 victory over the Chicago Bulls, Quickley had a night he would like to forget:
- 3 PTS
- 1 REB
- 2 AST
- 1-12 FG
- 0-7 3PT
- +6
- 26 MIN
Friday’s game seemed to be the tip of the iceberg for what has been a not-so-fun winning streak for Quickley.
While Quickley has still been highly impactful on the defensive end, his offensive performance has completely faltered over his last five games, and his efficiency has hit a massive roadblock.
In that five-game stretch, Quickley also failed to shoot above 40% from the field in any game. He also failed to score in double figures in three of those five games despite playing at least 25 minutes in all five of those games.
This also comes at a time where the Knicks have been taking calls on the third-year guard out of Kentucky, showing a willingness to trade him elsewhere for the right price to improve the team.
Along with the obvious impact to the Knicks, this slump may also hurt his trade value, as other teams could potentially see him as too streaky on offense to take him on. Other teams may also try to lowball the Knicks and get Quickley for a cheaper bargain than New York wishes.
However, as of now, Quickley is still on the Knicks, so New York is patiently waiting for him to regain his form so that he could contribute to more winning basketball for one of the hottest teams in the NBA right now.
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There is good reason to hope that he will turn it around:
After starting off the season slow, Quickley had seemed to finally pick things up offensively. In six games before the five game slide, Quickley averaged 13 PPG, 4.1 RPG, and shot 50% from the field.
He’s also shown several times that he can be an effective facilitator while on the court, bringing great pace and energy.
Quickley was playing some of the best basketball of his young career prior to hitting this slump. The Knicks have been winning all these games lately,y with him playing some of his worst.
Quickley has always remained confident even during his slumps, and his mindset has constantly been focused on making any contribution to the team as much as he can. He also admits that he wishes he would hit more shots, but his mindset remains unselfish.
“When the ball doesn’t go in the basket is when you gotta continue to defend and things like that. But it’s definitely always great when the ball is going in the basket, for sure.”
Immanuel Quickley via New York Post on November 22, 2022
Therefore, optimism lies beneath the surface of Knicks fans minds that Quickley’s hard work ethic will translate into sustained success on both ends of the floor.
Quickley will look to snap out of his slump when the Knicks take on the Indiana Pacers on Sunday.
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