During the 2022 NBA offseason, some rumors were floating around that Cam Reddish was going to request a trade from the New York Knicks. New York had acquired Reddish from the Atlanta Hawks in January, along with Solomon Hill and a 2025 second-round pick, in exchange for Kevin Knox and a protected 2022 first-round pick via the Charlotte Hornets.
Reddish had quietly requested a trade from the Hawks during the 2021 offseason as he was seeking a bigger opportunity at playing time.
There couldn’t have been a much worse landing spot from that perspective than the Knicks who already had RJ Barrett and Evan Fournier entrenched as the starting wings with rookie Quentin Grimes earning minutes off the bench behind them.
Injuries eventually opened up an opportunity for Reddish to play, but then an injury of his own ended his season prematurely. In the 15 games with the Knicks, Reddish averaged only 14.3 minutes per game, by far the lowest of his career.
The rumors about requesting another trade from the Knicks in search of more consistent playing time was something Reddish shot down on his social media accounts. He was working hard and going to do everything he could to earn time in Tom Thibodeau’s rotation.
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An injury once again opened up playing time for him, as Grimes’s sore foot kept him out of the lineup at the start of the season. Reddish responded with easily his best game as a Knick in the season opener, scoring 22 points with five rebounds, three steals and one block.
The No. 10 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft has remained a part of the rotation all season, earning the trust of Thibodeau along the way. While there have been some hiccups, we are beginning to see the potential that Reddish possesses.
When Thibodeau made a change to the lineup, removing Evan Fournier from the starting lineup, it was Reddish that took his spot. There was a little confusion in a few of those games as Thibodeau forced minutes for Fournier and Grimes, but with the Knicks embarking on a five-game road trip, another change was made.
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Thibodeau cut his rotation down to nine players in the first game of the trip against the Utah Jazz. Fournier and Grimes were out of the rotation and knowing he had a longer leash seemed to put Reddish at ease as he had an impressive game in Salt Lake City.
He showcased his two-way play, as he got going on the defensive end early on. That performance fueled the rest of his evening as Reddish eventually got going offensively as well, scoring 19 points on 7-of-13 from the field, including 2-of-5 from 3-point range and 3-of-3 from the foul line.
He added one rebound, one assist, one steal and one block but he is beginning to do the little things that don’t show up on the stat sheet. His rotations are becoming crips on the defensive end and he is putting a lot of pressure on opponents as one of the few players capable of putting the ball on the floor and attacking the basket.
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The performance against the Jazz followed up a strong one against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday afternoon. That was an embarrassing performance overall for New York, as they surrendered 145 points to the Thunder, but Reddish was a bright spot, scoring an efficient 26 points with three rebounds, two assists, four steals and one block.
That presence defensively is what makes Reddish such a good fit in this starting lineup. He provides size and length, standing 6’8” with a 7’1” wingspan, taking pressure off of Barrett as a perimeter defender and complementing Jalen Brunson well.
Slow starts became commonplace for the Knicks as they struggled to slow people down with Fournier in that spot, but that will hopefully change as long as Reddish holds down the spot.
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Putting back-to-back good performances together is worth taking notice of for Reddish. He has struggled to find consistency thus far in his NBA career, as his motor wasn’t always running. Now seemingly locked into a starting role, the Knicks look like they have found a way to help Reddish keep that motor going as he is realizing some of the potential that made him a lottery pick a few years ago.