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During the offseason, the New York Knicks made the surprising move to sign veteran guard Tim Hardaway on a four-year, $71 million deal in free agency.
Since then, there has been much criticism thrown toward the Knicks for the move to commit a lucrative long-term contract to Hardaway. According to Al Iannazzone of Newsday, the 25-year-old believes there is only one way to handle the situation this upcoming season.
“Everybody gets upset (about it) but it’s not my fault. All I can do is back it up. I’m pretty sure this preseason I’ve been doing so. Whether it was a small contract or a big contract, I’m happy I’m able to play with this team, able to play with the New York Knicks and I’m happy to be back home.”
Hardaway has a prime opportunity to take up a significant offensive role in his second stint with the Knicks to produce like a player that would warrant the deal he garnered. He is coming off his best individual campaign where he averaged a career-high 14.5 points on 45.5 percent shooting from the field and 35.7 percent from the beyond the arc along with 2.8 rebounds, and 2.3 assists in 27.3 minutes per contest.
Although Hardaway has yet to show that he was worth a lucrative deal, he has become a proven scorer with his ability to stretch the floor with his outside shooting. Last season, he recorded 21 games with 20 or more points and had two 30-point performances.
The ball is in Hardaway's court to demonstrate this season starting in Thursday night's season opener against the Oklahoma City Thunder that he was worth the huge financial commitment.
