RJ Barrett

While Barrett was unlikely to match the hype of Duke teammate Zion Williamson in the 2019-20 rookie class, he put up a solid debut campaign. The 2019 third-overall pick finished the season having averaged 14.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.0 steals over 30.4 minutes of run. Unfortunately, his efficiency numbers tell a slightly less appealing story. Barrett sported just a .445 effective field goal percentage to go along with a 32.0 percent mark from beyond the arc and just a 61.4 rate from the charity stripe. Those tallies fall well below the league average across the board, especially for a guard. Barrett should see plenty of action again in his second season for a rebuilding Knicks club and be given every opportunity to prove his worth given the draft capital involved, so there's no reason to panic at this early stage of his career.

Barrett will step into the New York spotlight after an impressive freshman campaign at Duke where he averaged 22.6 points, 7.6 rebounds and 4.3 assists while shooting 30.8 percent from deep -- a mark feels like it needs to improve given the importance of three-point shooting, especially for guards, in the NBA. Barrett appears to be in line to play a high-volume role as both a scorer and playmaker in his rookie season, though the Knicks do have other, more experienced ball-dependent players on the roster, including Dennis Smith Jr., Elfrid Payton and Julius Randle. Barrett showed off his potential in summer league, averaging 16.8 points, 9.3 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.0 block in four games. However, he shot an extremely underwhelming 37.3 percent from the field, 28.6 percent from three and 65.4 percent from the charity stripe. On one hand, it feels like there's a clear avenue for Barrett to take control of the Knicks' offense and be the face of the franchise as a rookie. On the other hand, the number of other options New York has to score and distribute the basketball means Barrett could get lost in the shuffle if his efficiency, playmaking and/or defense are worse than anticipated.