Jericho Sims was primarily used as a center last season, but it looks like he’ll see more time at power forward, writes Fred Katz of The Athletic. Sims logged most of his 26 minutes at the four during the Knicks’ preseason opener on Monday as Josh Hart sat out the game. Hart will be the primary backup to Julius Randle after New York traded away Obi Toppin this summer, but coach Tom Thibodeau plans to employ Sims in that role as well.
“We wanted to get a look at that with (Sims) on the floor,” Thibodeau said. “With Josh out and Julius (Randle) playing limited minutes, it was a good opportunity for that.”
Katz notes that Sims played just 139 minutes last season alongside either Mitchell Robinson or Isaiah Hartenstein. Thibodeau may use those combinations more often against bigger lineups, even though it limits what the team can do on offense. The lack of spacing was a concern in Monday’s game, Katz observes, as Sims was left virtually unguarded in the corner as drivers encountered multiple defenders in the paint.
Hartenstein has also been seeing time at power forward in practice, per Zach Braziller of The New York Post, and Thibodeau likes how he and Sims work together on the court.
“(Hartenstein) and Jericho, they play very effectively together. And oftentimes, I’ll go more by how they’re being defended, who do they have their 4 on, who do they have their 5 on?” Thibodeau said.
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