RJ Barrett

Plagued by a slow start to begin the year, Barrett finished 2021-22 averaging 20.0 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.0 assists across 70 games. He also displayed great success getting to the free-throw line last season, ranking 16th in the league at 5.8 FTA per game. His final 40 games yielded 23.7 points per game on a 41.1/35.1/71.9 percent shooting slash. Nonetheless, last season marked a noticeable decline in productivity from Barrett. Salvaged by volume, the 22-year-old having ups and downs is natural. However, he shot 40.1 percent from deep two seasons ago -- and that sharp dip in three-point shooting is problematic. Additionally, his free-throw shooting has been below average throughout his young career. The Knicks added Jalen Brunson and possess an exciting young nucleus. Barrett's adjusted field-goal percentage jumps from 43.7 percent to 63.2 percent on catch-and-shoot opportunities when he's open. Given a good environment, it's a pivotal season for Barrett to showcase efficiency. With new weapons set to contribute in New York, Barrett's volume may dip slightly, but he should be in store for higher-quality looks. He also enters a contract year, which has historical precedence for stat production.

Barrett is coming off a productive sophomore season in which he posted 17.6 points, 5.8 boards, 3.0 dimes and 1.7 triples per game while also dramatically improving his shooting percentages. That's the good news. The bad news is New York spent the off-season adding playmakers and shooters in Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier, which seems to lower Barrett on New York's scoring option pecking order. But maybe Barrett will have more room to operate as defenses worry about the two veteran guards. The three-year veteran is definitely, once again, New York's starting small forward, and we know coach Tom Thibodeau loves to give his starters extra minutes. The Knicks' new talented roster will give Thibodeau the option of going small-ball with Randle at the five, surrounded by four proven shooters. That situation would allow Barrett the opportunity to maintain last year's whopping 34.5 minutes per game, despite the new roster additions. At age 21, Barrett still has plenty of upside. Those concerned about his modest rookie season in 2019-20 should take notice and acknowledge Barrett is a player on the rise.

While Barrett was unlikely to match the hype of Duke teammate Zion Williamson in the 2019-20 rookie class, he put up a solid debut campaign. The 2019 third-overall pick finished the season having averaged 14.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.0 steals over 30.4 minutes of run. Unfortunately, his efficiency numbers tell a slightly less appealing story. Barrett sported just a .445 effective field goal percentage to go along with a 32.0 percent mark from beyond the arc and just a 61.4 rate from the charity stripe. Those tallies fall well below the league average across the board, especially for a guard. Barrett should see plenty of action again in his second season for a rebuilding Knicks club and be given every opportunity to prove his worth given the draft capital involved, so there's no reason to panic at this early stage of his career.

Barrett will step into the New York spotlight after an impressive freshman campaign at Duke where he averaged 22.6 points, 7.6 rebounds and 4.3 assists while shooting 30.8 percent from deep -- a mark feels like it needs to improve given the importance of three-point shooting, especially for guards, in the NBA. Barrett appears to be in line to play a high-volume role as both a scorer and playmaker in his rookie season, though the Knicks do have other, more experienced ball-dependent players on the roster, including Dennis Smith Jr., Elfrid Payton and Julius Randle. Barrett showed off his potential in summer league, averaging 16.8 points, 9.3 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.0 block in four games. However, he shot an extremely underwhelming 37.3 percent from the field, 28.6 percent from three and 65.4 percent from the charity stripe. On one hand, it feels like there's a clear avenue for Barrett to take control of the Knicks' offense and be the face of the franchise as a rookie. On the other hand, the number of other options New York has to score and distribute the basketball means Barrett could get lost in the shuffle if his efficiency, playmaking and/or defense are worse than anticipated.