New York Knicks ‘very interested’ in Minnesota Timberwolves point guard Jonny Flynn - NBA Update
According to the sources, the New York Knicks have recently held talks with the Minnesota Timberwolves to make a feasible bid for the trade of young point guard Jonny Flynn. There have been no formal offers as yet, but the talks
are relatively advanced.
The New York Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni prefers to play a fast paced offensive game that puts a lot of emphasis on the point guard position. A good distributor at the position can help the New York Knicks get the best out of their
newly acquired super stars, Amar’e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony. The Knicks currently have 2004 Finals MVP Chauncey Billups as their starting point guard but there are concerns over the veteran’s fitness to carry the team throughout the season.
Hence the Knicks, as expected, have gone into the market looking for a point guard to serve as backup to Billups and in time develop into a good starting option. Jonny Flynn seems to be the consensus pick of the Knicks management
despite not showing much ability in his two years at the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The player also missed a large part of last season through injury and his performances were generally poor. Flynn averaged just 5.3 points and 3.4 assists last season although the season before it he showed some promise, going
for 13.5 points a game.
The trade is likely to go through as Flynn is surplus to requirements at the Minnesota Timberwolves, who have finally acquired Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio. The Timberwolves picked Rubio 5th overall in the 2009 NBA
Draft, but the player could not join the Minnesota franchise due to his contract with home club Barcelona.
With Rubio now in their ranks, it does not make much sense for the Timberwolves to keep hold of Flynn. However, there might be issues regarding who the Knicks are willing to part with in return. The most likely candidate so far
is guard Toney Douglas. Douglas stands 6-foot-2 and currently provides an energetic option off the bench for the Knicks. He averaged 10.6 points and 3.0 assists in the regular season. Douglas also improved his numbers slightly in the playoffs.
The Timberwolves might be interested, but Douglas recently had a major shoulder operation that could make him a risk for Minnesota. However, similar questions could be asked of Jonny Flynn who missed a large part of the 2010-2011
season with injuries. The trade thus seems balanced in that regard.
More importantly, both sides look like they are interested in seeing it through and thus Jonny Flynn could soon be coming to New York.
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