James Wiseman didn’t just make his Knicks preseason debut Monday - he gave New York something it has been hunting for all offseason: a live look at another center who can actually tilt the floor.
In just over nine minutes off the bench, Wiseman put up eight points on 3-of-4 shooting and grabbed five rebounds, including three on the offensive glass, while adding a block. It was his first game action since the season-ending Achilles injury he suffered last December right before Christmas.
The box score was mixed, and the Knicks’ offense sputtered with him on the court, posting a 52.4 offensive rating and a 25.6% true shooting mark over 19 possessions. But the bigger takeaway wasn’t the overall efficiency. It was the way Wiseman fit into the center picture.
He showed the rim-running skill that made him such an intriguing prospect in the first place, finishing a lob from veteran Jordan Clarkson on an alley-oop. Around the basket, that has always been one of his strengths; in his NBA career, Wiseman has shot 77.5% from 0-3 feet.
He also earned a bucket the hard way, following his own miss with a putback layup after securing an offensive rebound. And the Knicks, with Wiseman on the floor, grabbed 29.4% of their misses - better than the 24.4% they managed across the 39 minutes he sat.
“Just trying to contribute to the team with whatever I can do. Just really fight my hardest, that’s what I did,” said Wiseman after the game to reporters.
“It felt good just trying to contribute to the team”- James Wiseman pic.twitter.com/uJ7PVbqNxW
There was energy on both ends. Wiseman battled on the glass, blocked a shot and spent time working the paint.
For a Knicks team that has been looking for a third center behind Karl-Anthony Towns and Andre Drummond, that matters. Drummond had a strong showing too, finishing his 12 minutes with six points, five rebounds, three blocks and a +34.6 net rating.
That gives New York a little breathing room in a spot that has been a real offseason concern, especially with so much attention on finding help behind the main backup and the third-string job. Both centers the Knicks brought in to help replace Mitchell Robinson flashed right away.
Wiseman’s fit may not be a mystery to the coaching staff either. He played for Mike Brown when Brown was an associate head coach with the Warriors, and later worked under Mark Bryant in Detroit before Bryant moved on to the Knicks.
According to The Post’s Stefan Bondy, Wiseman is viewed as the “front-runner” for a spot on the Knicks’ Opening Night roster, as he’s “impressed in camp, according to witnesses.” At 25, he still has time to matter, and Monday was at least a reminder that the raw tools are still there.
If you were reading the tea leaves, the first big man off the bench after Towns and Drummond was Wiseman. Bruce Brown logged the most minutes among the training camp invites at 10:19, but Wiseman was on the floor longer than Tony Bradley, who played 6:05, and Drew Eubanks, who played 5:55.
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