Cole Fusion: Could Cole Anthony be an Austin Rivers-type player for the Knicks?
The Knicks have scouted Cole Anthony extensively, even if recent reports suggest they may not be targeting him at No. 8. If they can trade down (or up) into the middle of the first round, could he give New York a presence like Austin Rivers, who they missed on in 2016 free agency?
The New York Knicks and point guards are like, well, me and my winter chase for a six pack before it’s pool season: an annual, over-exaggerated, yet worthy pursuit that almost always ends up falling short.
Every year we hear the same chatter from “league sources,” that the Knicks are all but guaranteed to be targeting a point guard with their first-round draft pick. Not only that, but that this prospect will finally be the one that signs a contract beyond their rookie deal.
That has yet to happen, and apologies to some of you, but I’ve got little hope for Frank Ntilikina.
The point guard carousel in New York has been one of the more active spinning objects over the last decade, only second to the planet Earth herself. We’ve “enjoyed” watching storied veterans on retirement tours like Chauncey Billups, Mike Bibby, and Baron Davis, to settling for journeymen like Ramon Sessions and Jarrett Jack.
Yet, the most exciting point guard (for fans) to come across the court in Madison Square Garden over the last few years has been one who has next to no scoring game. That’s irony. Because of course, when New York finally drafted a point guard, it was Ntilikina, a stud defender who’s scored 20-plus points only once in three seasons.
Which brings us to today, and despite rumors swirling that UNC one-and-done Cole Anthony may not be in consideration for the Knicks in the lottery, they’ve also reportedly scouted him extensively, and hold the eighth and 27th overall picks in this year’s draft. Yes, Knicks fans, I can hear your grumbling from here.
…but bear with me.
If you’re truly trusting of the front office’s “new look and initiative,” then you’ve also got to trust that Leon Rose and company are seeing something that they like in Anthony.
And New York has been tied to him since talk of this draft class began, both from this regime and the old. What exactly is the infatuation with this point guard in particular?
The answer may lie in one of the previous regime’s failed point guard pursuits of the past. Specifically in 2016, when the Knicks met with Austin Rivers in free agency. He’d go on to re-sign with the LA Clippers, but maybe New York isn’t yet over his rejection.
Because when you look at Anthony, you see a lot of what has kept Rivers in an NBA uniform for eight seasons now, all the way down to the historical NBA lineage. The former Tar Heel’s father, Greg Anthony, was drafted by the Knicks in 1991.
You’ll no doubt remember the newest head coach for the Philadelphia 76ers, Doc Rivers, ran the floor as point guard in New York for a few years back in the ‘90s.
Aside from the fact that both their fathers at one point played point guard for the New York Knicks, Anthony and Rivers share very similar on-court characteristics. First, a look at their relatively similar college numbers:
Austin Rivers: 15.5 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.1 assists, one steal per game
43% FG, 36% 3PT, 66% FT
Cole Anthony: 18.5 points, 5.7 rebounds, 4 assists, 1.3 steals per game
38% FG, 35% 3PT, 75% FT
The main contextual difference here is the quality of the teams they played on, which certainly plays a role in usage and output. Rivers’ Duke team went 27-7, and ended up seeing seven players don an NBA uniform at one point thereafter.
Anthony’s UNC team, on the other hand, was one of the worst in recent history, and that’s from Tar Heels head coach Roy Williams himself. The Tar Heels went just 14-19, and will be lucky if anyone other than their point guard ends up playing in the NBA.
Anthony played a larger role on a bad North Carolina team. Otherwise, next to legitimate talent, it’s not hard to see his averages falling into Rivers’ range. But the areas of focus sit all the same: score the ball, and share it when you can.
As you can see above, neither Rivers nor Anthony was ever a “great” shooter in college. Their 3-point percentages rested at an average mark, but only due to the high volume of shots they were taking from beyond the arc.
Rivers has rounded out as an above average shooter, both within the mid-range and along the arc: he knocked down 49% of his 2-pointers and nearly 36% of his 3-pointers this season with the Houston Rockets.
With shooting one of the lesser concerns regarding Anthony’s future in the league, this holds promise given their on-court and physical similarities. Both guards are primarily scorers, despite manning the point guard position. Each of them relies heavily on their own shot creation, and typically don’t find trouble in that behind their individual speeds and ability to finish at the cup.
Weaknesses? Yeah, there are those, naturally. As was (and is) the case with Rivers, Anthony isn’t perfect. But it’s his weaknesses that could, oddly enough, make for an even better fit with the Knicks. The former UNC guard’s decision making could use some refinement, but it’s only due to a very apparent swagger and confidence on the floor. Rivers may not have had that exactly, or at least not in the NBA he doesn’t, but he’s certainly displayed some questionable shot selection and pass making.
Anthony is ready for the moment, whether his mental and physical ability pull him through it or not. It reminds me of what we saw from Trae Young in his rookie season, to which I made the same counter: man, would that be welcome at Madison Square Garden. And while it may be to a lesser frequency, moments like that from Anthony that can both capture and harness the intensity of the Garden crowd is no doubt on the mind of Thibodeau, his staff, and Leon Rose’s front office.
I mean, we’re talking about a guy that was vehemently playing his cello as the ship that was last years’ Tar Heels team continued to sink with every loss. Anthony maintained the same competitive drive that he had in high school at UNC, despite a strong lack of success at the college level.
A guy that can withstand a hard knock season, well, wouldn’t that be welcome in this particularly young Knicks locker room not projected to do a lot of winning?
Defensively, Anthony isn’t “sound” per se, but there’s a lot of promise on that end of the ball that will only be picked apart from this coaching staff.
So all this begs the question: does a player with an Austin Rivers-caliber ceiling make sense for the New York Knicks now, in this year’s draft? My answer: if he slides, absolutely. The Knicks are just as likely to stick at the eighth overall pick as they are likely to package that pick for later selections outside of the lottery.
A trade that lands them in the mid-to-late realm of the first-round would put New York very much in play for Anthony, whose stock has plateaued in that range. Both Sports Illustrated’s Jeremey Woo and The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor have him falling as low as 21st overall in each of their latest mock drafts.
It’s worth noting that both are also forming the comparison to Rivers, among others. Anthony projects at worst as a sixth man option for the Knicks, something they’ve firmly lacked, and wouldn’t mind having walking into next season.
At best? Hell, Anthony could be the point guard of the future.
But we’ve heard (and I’ve admittedly written) those stories too many times before.
Yet if New York was ever set up to take their time and develop a cornerstone point guard, it seems that this year might (finally) be that year. Not only have they brought in drill sergeant head coach Tom Thibodeau to lead the charge next season, but they’ve also been linked in trade rumors to Chris Paul: the point god, who didn’t campaign for that nickname but earned it in earnest. He’s cemented himself as one of the best of all time, now entering his 16th NBA season.
For the New York Knicks: a young, score-first guard, who can spot up from deep as well as find his way to the basket, has a fit on this year’s roster (I don’t need to remind you that the New York Knicks were bested only by the Charlotte Hornets last season in scoring incompetency, at 105.8 points per game nightly). It’s a new regime, sure, but there’s no doubt Leon Rose and company are going to be spotting for scoring capability among other things in this year’s draft.
