Before the 2019-20 campaign was suspended due to COVID-19, the New York Knicks were in 12th place in the Eastern Conference standings with a 21-45 record. The franchise fired head coach David Fizdale after 22 games and exec Steve Mills was reassigned.

The Knicks hired former CAA agent Leon Rose as their new president of basketball operations. The organization is hoping his litany of connections both in the coaching and player ranks will ultimately help the Knicks franchise become a winner again.

The first goal for Rose to accomplish is to acquire some sort of star talent at any position. New York believes it has its star swingman in R.J. Barrett. The lefty averaged 14.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 2.6 assists as a rookie in 56 games while shooting 40.2 percent from the field, 32.0 percent from beyond the arc, and 61.4 percent from the free-throw line.

Despite having talented shot-blocker Mitchell Robinson on the team, Rose and the Knicks should pursue Detroit Pistons unrestricted free agent Christian Wood whenever the 2020 offseason begins. Robinson and Wood can play together since Wood can space the floor with his perimeter shooting.

Wood averaged 22.8 points and 9.9 rebounds after the Pistons traded All-Star big man Andre Drummond to the Cleveland Cavaliers. The California native proved he's more than ready to be an 82-game NBA starter. The 24-year-old Wood flourishes in the pick-and-roll and can finish in heavy traffic due to his stellar athleticism.

Before the 2019-20 season was suspended, Wood was averaging 13.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.0 assists. He was also shooting 56.7 percent overall and 38.6 percent from the 3-point line.

Wood has so much more growth left in his game. The Knicks should sign him since he would give the franchise a legit young All-Star talent. Wood was one of the better players in the league this season in both as a spot-up player and a roll man. He shot 40.4 percent on his catch-and-shoot 3-point attempts.

Once the Knicks can get a legit point guard who can collapse the paint on drives to the basket, New York could have a nice guard-big man connection with Wood and Robinson feasting in the paint.

The Knicks are going to have to outbid the Pistons for Wood since Detroit wants to re-sign him. After all, there was a reason the Pistons traded Drummond, one of the best rebounders in the game. The Motor City franchise had faith that Wood would succeed with more minutes and their Drummond gamble paid off.

The Knicks have become a walking disaster under owner James Dolan. The franchise hasn’t had a winning record or made the playoffs since the 2012-13 season and the organization is seemingly always in the news for the wrong reasons. There's a sense, though, that things are going to change for the good since Rose is running the team now and he has so much respect throughout the league.

However, a lot of people thought Phil Jackson was going to save the Knicks since he won 11 titles as a coach. We all know how that turned out, so there's no guarantee that Rose will do a good job because of his credentials.

Once the 2020 free agency period begins, Rose should decline Bobby Portis' team option for next season to create room in the frontcourt for Wood. Christian would give the Knicks a third dynamic youngster next to Barrett and Robinson. More importantly, the Rose era would get off to a good start if Leon was able to land a young talent like Wood to begin his tenure.