NEW YORK, NY -- The Knicks have made their first serious offseason move. Arron Afflalo and the team's front office have agreed to terms on a contract worth $16 million over two years.
Afflalo last played in Portland, where he landed after a trade from the Denver Nuggets. He finished his full season with 13.3 points per game, along with 3.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. Afflalo, a 6'5" shooting guard, is known solely for his ability to score. His shooting stroke has always been very solid, and he is talented enough to score in a multitude of other ways.
For the Knicks, Afflalo will probably have a secondary offensive role behind Carmelo Anthony, and maybe his ability will lead to more openings for Melo. The Knicks are looking to sign a bigger free agent such as Greg Monroe, so they don't seem to be done yet. One move won't reverse a second-to-NBA-bottom season.
At 29, Afflalo is a veteran two guard who was drafted out of UCLA back in the late first round of the 2007 NBA Draft. He has played for the Pistons, Nuggets, Magic, and Blazers in his career. Adding New York to that last, it can be seen that Afflalo has never taken a big role at a successful organization. With Portland on the brink of a playoff run which they somewhat made in 2015, Afflalo posted his lowest scoring numbers since before the 2010-2011 season.
2013-2014 was a career year for Afflalo, as with the Orlando Magic he scored 18.2 points per game as the first offensive option. He also had a career-high with 3.4 assists.
The Knicks won't get much but scoring from Arron Afflalo. His defense is average, maybe a bit better, and his assist totals are underwhelming. New York needed scoring, so that is what they started to go out and buy.