Andre Drummond drew curiosity from several other golf equipment around the league during the offseason, but after speaking issues over with his agent, he determined that becoming a member of the Knicks made the most sense.
“This was the best option,” he said Tuesday. “Being born in Mount Vernon and then moving to Connecticut very young, I’ve always been a Knicks fan — from Amar’e [Stoudemire] to Patrick Ewing, the list of greats in this organization, it’s a true honor to put the jersey on.”
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Bruce Brown is Drummond’s only new teammate whom he’s performed with before, but he does have a lot of expertise competing against the majority of this roster over the years.
The most latest time, of course, was when the Knicks despatched him and the 76ers packing in the Eastern Conference Semifinals last yr en route to their drought-snapping championship berth.
One factor Drummond remembers from that sequence: New York followers fully taking over Xfinity Arena.
“It was crazy,” he said with a smile. “It felt like a road game the whole series, you guys came down and took over the Philadelphia arena, it was crazy even seeing some of the fans from there wearing Knicks jerseys too — the Knicks fanbase is far-and-wide, it doesn’t matter where you are in the world, definitely the basketball Mecca.”
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Now, the 33-year-old will get to expertise what it’s like being on the other facet of that passionate fanbase.
Drummond is expected to play a fairly vital function in his first yr with the group, too, serving to make up for the loss of beloved huge man Mitchell Robinson to the rival Boston Celtics in free company.
The Knicks know changing Robinson’s manufacturing is an awfully tall activity to ask of anyone, though, so they are merely trying for the veteran heart to go out and play his recreation.
“The best part of the situation Andre is in,” captain Jalen Brunson defined. “He’s not coming in to be Mitch, he’s coming in to be himself — we have to give him the confidence to be himself — this is a new team and a new journey, we’re going to attack it every day.”
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Though he’s seen his manufacturing drop off a bit as his profession has progressed, Drummond was in a position to pull in 8.4 boards while averaging just under 20 minutes per night time across 63 video games with Philly last season.
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