When the New York Knicks agreed to send Tim Hardaway Jr. packing during the summer of 2015, the then 23-year-old had plenty to learn about how to play team ball.
Hardaway Jr., just one season removed from All-NBA Rookie First Team honors, quickly found himself on the receiving end of the New York faithful’s criticism.
He had not developed as a passer. He had not developed as a defender. He was still the same one-dimensional player from his rookie season. His failure to mature as a player—and me-first mindset—were some of the reasons the Knicks traded him to Atlanta.