Knicks' Tom Thibodeau Says Initial Impression of RJ Barrett Has Been 'Great'

New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau already likes what he sees out of RJ Barrett.

"It's been great," Thibodeau said when asked about his initial impressions of the No. 3 overall pick in last year's draft, per Tim Bontemps of ESPN. 

Wednesday was the Knicks' first practice under Thibodeau as part of their voluntary minicamp the NBA permitted for the eight teams that were not invited to the Walt Disney World Resort bubble, and the coach opened up a bit more on Barrett's development.

"These are the initial steps," he said. "The offseason is critical for any young player. So obviously you can get going on the development piece, which I think is critical. That holds true for all our players. But he's been great, eager, he's working hard. If he does that day after day he will improve quite a bit."

Barrett did not exactly live up to expectations in his rookie season.

He averaged 14.3 points and 5.0 rebounds per game while shooting just 40.2 percent from the field and 32.0 percent from three-point range. His assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.6-to-2.2 was also disappointing for Knicks fans, especially since his ability to generate offense as a future playmaker is one of the best chances the franchise has at turning things around in the future.

New York also needs Kevin Knox to bounce back after experiencing a dropoff in his numbers nearly across the board from his rookie campaign in 2018-19 to his second season in 2019-20.

The Kentucky product went from someone who averaged 12.8 points and 4.5 rebounds per game while shooting 37.0 percent from the field to someone who averaged 6.4 points and 2.8 rebounds a night behind 35.9 percent shooting from the field.

"I think it's all about building the right habits so the team can get better and improve as time goes on," Thibodeau said. "Kevin's come in and he's done quite a bit of work. It's the same thing ... I'm getting to know him and he's getting to know me. It will take some time. But I like what he's done so far."

Thibodeau will have his work cut out for him considering the Knicks missed the playoffs in each of the last seven seasons. They have also won just one playoff series since reaching the 2000 Eastern Conference Finals.

New York brought Thibodeau in for a culture change and to bring back the winning tradition of the franchise.

It all starts with the development of the young players—as well as whoever the Knicks select with the No. 8 overall pick in the 2020 NBA draft—and the head coach is already working on his relationship with two of the key pieces.