Knicks guard Landry Shamet reacting during Thursday Toronto game
Knicks guard Landry Shamet reacting during Thursday Toronto game
Landry Shamet went 1-for-5 from three Thursday and still gave the Knicks a useful reserve performance. His case for minutes deserves more thought than pretending he suddenly caught fire.
Shamet scored 13 points in 24 minutes, 10 seconds during New York’s 122-120 win over Toronto. Six of those points came at the foul line, where he made six of seven attempts. The contribution survived a poor shooting night because there was something else in it.
Shamet did the smaller jobs the Knicks needed
Shamet added three assists, two steals and no turnovers. He shot 3-for-8 overall, so the scoring wasn’t especially efficient from the floor. But he didn’t compound the misses by giving away possessions when he handled the ball.
New York committed 19 turnovers as a team. One reserve’s clean passing won’t fix that total, and assists alone don’t describe every decision he made. It is still useful to have a guard finish a substantial preseason stint without adding another avoidable turnover to the pile.
Knicks guard Landry Shamet high-fiving Jordan Clarkson against Toronto
Oct 15, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks point guard Landry Shamet (44) high fives point guard Jordan Clarkson (00) during the second half at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The two steals helped as well, although they shouldn’t be used to declare his defense solved. A player can make a pair of good plays and still struggle with other assignments. His plus-14 also describes what happened with a particular group on the court; it isn’t an independent grade for his performance.
There are other guards with good arguments
Miles McBride hit three of six threes and scored nine in 13 minutes, 28 seconds. Jose Alvarado also scored nine, making all three of his three-point attempts. Shamet wasn’t the only reserve to help, and one finale doesn’t establish that he should jump ahead of either player.
The distinction is what each assignment requires. Shamet’s night offered a case for playing him when the Knicks want shooting potential without asking the reserve to create the whole offense. McBride’s shot-making and Alvarado’s ball-handling give the staff other combinations to consider. Actual defensive matchups and the available minutes should decide among them.
Shamet still needs to make more than one in five from deep over a meaningful sample. There is no point pretending his main offensive skill is optional. Thursday simply showed why a missed three doesn’t have to make the rest of his shift empty.
The Knicks shouldn’t hand him a permanent role for a preseason line. They should remember this performance when the next shooting slump makes it tempting to judge his entire night by the first few attempts from outside.