Kelley L. Cox – USA Today Sports Images
The New York Knicks’ off-season has been full of confusing moves and, as the case always is in the Big Apple, has been entertaining. They completed a deal that landed them former number one overall pick Andrea Bargnani, re-signed J.R. Smith and signed veteran small forward Metta World Peace.
Now the Knicks have a signing that doesn’t involve as highly touted names as their other off-season moves, but rather involves a player with upside that could be a valuable reserve. According to multiple media outlets, the Knicks have agreed to a two-year deal with free-agent big man Jeremy Tyler, with the money in the contract partially guaranteed.
Tyler was a second-round pick in the 2011 NBA Draft and hasn’t done much in his two NBA seasons. In 63 career games he has averaged only 3.6 points, 2.5 rebounds and 0.3 blocks in 10.1 minutes per game while shooting only 41.6 percent from the floor.
Tyler has had success in limited time in the NBA D-League, though. In 17 career D-League games he averaged 16.9 points, 8.5 rebounds, 0.6 steals and 0.6 blocks in 27.9 minutes per game while shooting 54.9 percent from the floor. At the Las Vegas Summer League this year, while playing for the Knicks’ squad, Tyler also had a decent amount of success. In Sin City he averaged 12.8 points, 6.4 rebounds and 0.4 blocks in just 17.6 minutes per game and shot 56.3 percent from the field.
When it comes to Tyler, the talent and the size is there. However, he has a tendency to try to do too much with the ball and forces things a lot of the time. At just 22 years old, though, it’s a solid move to take a gamble on Tyler as a backup center or power forward that can come and hopefully continue to develop into a solid NBA big man.
Cody Williams is a Senior Writer with Rant Sports. Follow Cody on Twitter @TheSizzle20, add him on Google and like his Facebook page.
