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If Kevin Durant affirms over a year's worth of rumors by signing with the New York Knicks this summer, the two-time reigning Finals MVP's unparalleled scoring acumen is what will get Madison Square Garden rocking loudest. But defense wins championships, the trope goes, and Durant is also one of the league's best defenders both on and off the ball – at least when fully engaged.
Unlike the other side of the ball, Durant isn't quite equipped with the physical gifts to produce a title-worthy defense all by himself. Few players in the league are blessed with the necessary combination of natural talent, innate instincts, and dogged disposition to make that kind of game-changing impact on a nightly basis. But despite his team's immense struggles on defense this season, coach David Fizdale is confident the Knicks' process will eventually pay off with results – assuming his personnel improves, of course.
“Our defense won’t really, really get to where it’s at until we start to really fill in the gaps with the type of guys we think can take our defense to the next level,” he said, per Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News. “Add maybe another forward defender or another perimeter defender that has a reputation for that. Those kind of guys are the ones that elevate your system to the next level.”
New York, last in defensive rating this season, has a rare defensive building block on the roster in rookie Mitchell Robinson, a freakishly athletic seven-footer who leads the league in block percentage. Sophomore guard Frank Ntilikina showed all-NBA potential on defense as a rookie before his progress was beset by injury in 2018-19, while point guard Dennis Smith, Jr, and rookie wing Kevin Knox both have the physical gifts to emerge as quality, versatile defenders.
Needless to say, though, that group could sure use some veteran guidance. Will Durant be the one to give it to them? We'll find out this summer.
