NBA
Q&A: Kyle O’Quinn Excited to Join New York Knicks
On Saturday, the New York Knicks and Orlando Magic agreed to a sign-and-trade deal that will send big man Kyle O’Quinn to New York in exchange for cash and a future second-round pick. The three-year NBA veteran has agreed to a four-year, $16 million deal with the Knicks. O’Quinn was born in Jamaica, New York and attended high school in Queens. In the games that O’Quinn started at center for the Magic during the 2014-15 season, he averaged 12.8 points, 5.7 rebounds and a block.
Basketball Insiders’ Alex Kennedy caught up with O’Quinn to talk about playing for his hometown team, his expectations for next season and what Knicks fans can expect from him.
Basketball Insiders: How did this all progress and where were you when you found out that youโd be heading to your hometown Knicks?
Kyle OโQuinn: โWhen I heard about their interest, I had just landed in Las Vegas because I train out there at Impact Basketball in the offseason. I had just turned on my phone and my agent had texted me, โCall me as soon as you land.โ I prayed really quick, hoped he had good news and I called him. He told me about the framework of the Knicksโ deal and said [the sign-and-trade] would likely happen if everything fell into place. Then, I got off the phone and prayed again. I had plans to go to C.J. Watsonโs house, because weโre good friends and I thought he would be my new teammate in Orlando since he just signed with the Magic. Then, when I was headed to his house, thatโs when I found out it was basically done. The text messages started rolling in and I knew it was being finalized. When I got to his house, C.J.โs family said, โWe canโt wait to see you in Orlando! Weโre so happy you and C.J. will be teammates!โ Then, I had to break the news to his family.โ
Basketball Insiders: Your family lives in New York, so how excited are they about this move?
Kyle OโQuinn: โMy parents are super excited. Theyโre going to be able to go to all of my home games and see me more. My dad is the excited the most, because he likes to be around me a lot and he says this is making up for the years that I was away in college and in Orlando. He thought Iโd never come back to New York, but it worked out. My mom, sheโs in security mode right now. Sheโs happy for me, but sheโs laying out ground rules. She wants it to be clear to people that this isnโt some big family reunion and that Iโm not always going to be accessible. Sheโs telling me, โYou arenโt coming home for a family reunion. You have a job to do and you need to work.โ I told her, โI know, I know!โโ
Basketball Insiders: Did you grow up as a fan of the Knicks?
Kyle OโQuinn: โOh, of course I grew up a Knicks fan; if youโre from New York, youโve gotta grow up a Knicks fan. They are always on T.V. and they dominated my T.V. growing up. And whatever the Knicks do – whether they’re doing good or bad – itโs always on the front page of the sports section. It was good entertainment for me when I was a youngโun. I wasnโt raised in a crazy basketball family, but the Knicks always had a place in our hearts. The crazy thing is, my first NBA game I ever went to was the Knicks vs. the Magic at Madison Square Garden.โ
Basketball Insiders: Youโve never been on a playoff team. The Knicks have made a number of moves this summer. How good can this team be and could this be the year that you make your postseason debut?
Kyle OโQuinn: Itโs a great possibility. We have a superstar in Carmelo Anthony, who is proven. We have Robin Lopez. We have Arron Afflalo, who I played with in Orlando. We have guys who have been there before and know what it takes to be successful. Those are the guys you can learn from. That would be great to make my playoff debut. I havenโt even thought that far, thatโd be special. And to do it in New York, in front of my Mom and Dad? That would be so great. I want this season to go longer than my first three seasons went. I was watching these last playoffs and saying, โMan, I gotta get there. I need a taste of that.โ E’Twaun [Moore] got to taste it this year with the Chicago Bulls and heโs my boy and my former Magic teammate, so I was living vicariously through him. He wasnโt even playing that much, but I was calling him every day like, โEโTwaun, whatโs it like? How does it feel?โ I used to do the same thing in college, during my first few years when I didnโt make the NCAA Tournament. I lived vicariously through my friends who made it. Then, I finally got to experience it myself and it was just so amazing. I think thatโs how itโs going to be for me when I finally get to be in the playoffs.โ
Basketball Insiders: Do you have any idea what role youโre going to have on the Knicks? Have you talked to Phil Jackson and Derek Fisher about that yet?
Kyle OโQuinn: โI think Iโll have a solid back-up role at first and then Iโll just work from there. Iโm approaching it like Iโm coming in as a rookie and have to work hard and prove myself. I do think that back-up big man role is pretty open and I want to capitalize on that. I talked to Arron the other day when he heard the deal was going to go down and he told me, โThis is an opportunity to play and get a more significant role. The team wasnโt that successful last year so itโs not like certain guys have to start.โ I honestly donโt know my exact role, Iโll give you a better answer when I get there, but Iโm going in ready to do whatever I can to get on the court and contribute. Iโm coming in ready and I’m handling my business so that I can fill any role asked of me.โ
Basketball Insiders: For the New York fans who donโt know much about you and havenโt seen you play, how would you describe your game and what will you bring to the team?
Kyle OโQuinn: โOn the court, I bring my competitiveness, my motor, my hard work and my will to win. In the NBA, itโs a funny league. Itโs not like college where every kid is dying to win. Thatโs how I was in college; I was dying to win every single game. Thatโs always been in me, a desire to just win, win, win. Thatโs the only way Iโm satisfied โ when weโre winning. When things are going wrong, Iโm determined to turn things around and get the team back to winning, rather than just saying, โOh well, now thatโs letโs focus on getting a high draft pick.โ Thatโs not my type of basketball. Theyโre going to get someone obsessed with winning.
Off the court, Iโm just going to try to develop as much as possible โ I just want to continue to grow as a player. And, of course, I want to be the best teammate I can be. I know I can learn a lot from the guys in New York. Coach Derek Fisher played so many years in the league, and I know heโs a playerโs coach. I learned a lot from [former Magic head coach] Jacque Vaughn and Iโm sure Derek Fisher has a lot of knowledge to share with me as well, so itโll be good to play for another coach who played the game. I canโt wait to learn from him.โ
Basketball Insiders: What was it like to have Phil Jackson show interest in you? How much of an honor is that?
Kyle OโQuinn: โOh man, that felt good. (laughs) At first, I was like, โDamn, this is Phil Jackson!โ Then, once it sunk in, I started to think about whatโs next. I didnโt want that to be our only conversation, you know? I was hoping it wasnโt a one-time thing. I canโt wait to be around him with the Knicks.โ
Basketball Insiders: What aspects of your game are you working on this offseason as you train at Impact Basketball in Las Vegas?
Kyle OโQuinn: โIโm working on the same things I always do. Iโm trying to expand my game, learn from my mistakes last year and focus on little things like screen-setting, rolling out of screens faster, picking my spots on the pop shot. Of course, Iโm working on my jump-shot, some go-to moves in the post, my conditioning and body, things like that. The biggest thing for me is sharpening up the things that I do well. I do want to get better at shooting corner threes. Last year, I was asked to do that and I want to keep working on that and expanding my range. Iโm just sharpening everything so that Iโm more comfortable and confident with my shot. At Impact, they help you become an all-around player, so Iโll be ready to play any role thatโs asked of me. Iโm following the Impact plan.โ
Basketball Insiders: I know youโre excited about New York, but you also have a lot of friends on this Magic team and I know that you loved Orlando. Is it tough to leave and go to a new situation?
Kyle OโQuinn: โI texted all of those guys yesterday and I was FaceTiming with a lot of them. I talked to [Nik] Vucevic โ he texted me from some wild number that had a plus sign and, like, 47 numbers. I talked to all of them. I love those guys. Those were my first NBA teammates and I can honestly say that I love those guys and Iโll consider them friends for life. Itโs going to be tough not having them around and doing everything without them. When we would land in the city, I would immediately knock on Voochโs door. I would get on the plane and Elfrid [Payton] and Aaron [Gordon] would bring me Chipotle. And it wasnโt even rookie duties, it just a friendship thing and we were all so tight. Iโll miss Moe [Harkless] – getting on his nerves, him getting on my nerves and singing together in the locker room with him. Man, I love those guys and had so much fun with them. They made going to work fun. Iโm bottling all of [those emotions] up and accepting the fact that Iโm going to another team and being excited about the new opportunity, but it will be very, very, very, very, very hard to leave Orlando and leave those guys. A lot of us are really cool with each other and we made a promise that weโd be friends for life and weโre going to stick to that. Later this summer, I think weโre all going to try to get together to grab dinner and hang out. I canโt wait to see them and weโll stay close.โ