Knicks Rumors: Why J.R. Smith Shouldn't Start for the Knicks

Amongst all the Linsanity being spread around New York and the sports world, there is still a great deal of basketball left to be played this NBA season and every true basketball fan knows that the teams with great depth usually go far in the playoffs.

That being said, the New York Knicks seem to be infatuated with adding guard J.R. Smith to bolster their roster moving forward. This would be a big move for the Knicks, but J.R. Smith should not be moved into the starting rotation of the Knicks.

Why?

Well, simply put, there are not enough shots on the court for Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudemire, Jeremy Lin and J.R. Smith. These players do not compliment one another well, and if they are on the court together at the same time it will not work out.

Carmelo Anthony will have to adjust when he comes back to keep this offensive flow going for the Knicks. Amare Stoudemire is still adjusting, not only to Jeremy Lin, but you can also tell in his play that he doesn't quite have his legs underneath him yet.

If you added J.R. Smith to this starting lineup it would become too complicated on the offensive end of the floor again. Not to mention that Landry Fields is a better defender than Smith. Plus Fields and Lin are in sync with each other on the offensive end right now.

Why would the Knicks ruin the continuity they have going on the floor right now?

I'm not saying J.R. Smith shouldn't be a member of the Knicks, but what if he comes off the bench as a sixth man?

This is a role Smith is familiar with because it is the role he played for the Denver Nuggets.

Imagine this lineup for the Knicks:

Starters

PG: Jeremy Lin

SG: Landry Fields

SF: Carmelo Anthony

PF: Amare Stoudemire

C: Tyson Chandler

Second Unit

PG: Baron Davis/Iman Shumpert

SG: J.R. Smith

SF: Bill Walker/ Steve Novak

PF/C: Jared Jeffries/Josh Harrellson

That second unit could put up a decent amount of points and could create more resting time for the starters during this hectic schedule. It makes perfect sense for the Knicks and J.R. Smith.