Change may be coming to New York, especially after head coach Jeff Hornacek made recent comments about the Knicks' minute distribution. Hornacek intends on playing large centers against teams that use small-lineups. According to Ian Begley of ESPN, this might equate to more playing time for Willy Hernangomez.
Jeff Hornacek says the Knicks, who have 4 centers on the roster, may try to play bigger lineups against teams that go small as opposed to matching them with a smaller lineup. This could lead to more playing time for Willy Hernangomez, who’s been largely out of the rotation.
Specifically, Hornacek seems to be experimenting with the possibility of lineup changes when his team faces small-lineups. Hornacek notes that since his team isn't particularly good at stopping these lineups with smaller centers, he just may try and use big centers to see what would happen.
“If we were going small against these teams and all of sudden we won them all, then you go, okay. Some games we win with it, some games we lose with it. So that's a thought that we don't always have to go with a small lineup. We can go big and see what happens.”
Hernangomez, who is listed as 6'11, could see substantial playing time for the Knicks as Hornacek makes some tweaks in the lineup. Hernangomez is currently averaging 4.6 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 0.7 assists, while playing 9.5 minutes per game. Hernangomez was drafted in 2015 by the Philadelphia 76ers with the 35th pick in the 2nd round. His rights were later traded to the Knicks, where he made his debut in 2016, scoring 4 points in 9 minutes against the Cleveland Cavaliers
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