Maybe it’s not the same as wearing a Red Sox jersey to a Yankees game, but joining an NBA team populated by veterans can be a scary proposition for a rookie.
So Tim Hardaway Jr. has brought a professional pedigree and approach taught by his All-Star dad, plus a desire to defend, to help ease the process of his first Knicks training camp.
By all accounts, the 24th pick in June’s draft has impressed coach Mike Woodson and his crew.
“The biggest thing is just playing defense,” Hardaway Jr. said Thursday after the Knicks completed Day 3 of camp. “Coach Woodson is very big on guys playing defense, and when you’re a rookie coming in with a lot of veterans, that’s what they expect you to do. If you want to see the floor, they expect you to play defense. I’m trying to do that and just give a lot of energy.”
And he does the other stuff.
“He’s a lot rangier than I thought he was coming out of college,” Woodson said of the 6-foot-6 Michigan product. “He plays bigger than you think. He’s got a great stroke and can put it in the hole.”
Some things, you can’t help but notice.
“He’s a professional. He can really shoot the ball, really understands the game. He’s just a great all-around player,” point guard Raymond Felton said.
Hardaway, whose summer-league stint was cut short by a bruised left wrist — “I’m fine,” he said — readily admits where he learned his all-in approach.
“I credit my dad,” Hardaway Jr. said. “Growing up, I always played around with the game, never took it serious. He told me you’ve got to take the game serious if you want to get to where you want to get to.”
Well, the guard got to the first round of the draft. Teams that rely on rookies usually become well acquainted with the NBA lottery procedures, but circumstances could create opportunity for Hardaway Jr., especially early in his debut season.
J.R. Smith, when he finishes his knee rehab, must serve a five-game suspension for violating the league’s anti-drug program.
“It’s a good opportunity,” said Hardaway, who stressed the help Smith has provided. “Even though J.R is not going to play those first couple of games, he’s been out here teaching me the values of playing Knicks basketball. Coming from a veteran like him, a role model like him, it’s great to have him encouraging me.”
Hardaway Jr. might want to hold off on that role model thing a bit longer. But if he continues doing what he’s doing, he could follow the lead of another current Knick, Iman Shumpert, and contribute as a rookie.
“He competes on both sides of the floor,” Shumpert said. “Obviously, the way he was raised to play the game is the right way. If you tell him something, he’s very receptive to information, applies it right away.”
So what did Shumpert, a rookie contributor two years ago, tell this season’s hopeful?
“To just keep doing the things he’s doing,” Shumpert said. “As long as he stays pure and true to the game, it’s going to give back to him. If you come out here and play hard, it’s going to show. And New York is going to love him for it.”