Guerschon Yabusele will forever go down as a weird blip in Knicks history. Many years down the line, the Frenchman’s name will be brough up in trivia and reminiscing conversations, not just for his very tumultuous time as a Knick, but also for the incredibly selfless gesture he made that allowed the Knicks to acquire Jose Alvarado.
Yabusele, the player, left a lot to be desired. There’s really no way around it. He was put in a difficult situation where he was used in a way that maybe didn’t fully highlight his strengths. And he was playing in a very limited and inconsistent role that likely made getting into a rhythm difficult. But he did himself no favors. Yabusele started off by coming into the season a bit heavier than in the season prior. When the season began, while the effort was there, not much else was. The shooting was inconsistent, if not downright bad. The paint looks, be it in transition or off of a PnR, didn’t feel or look much better. And he just didn’t offer much in any specific area of the game.
But Yabusele unexpectedly won over the hearts of fans by doing them an incredibly big favor on his way out. To make the Knicks’ trade for the Brooklyn-native possible, he amended his contract to remove his $5.8 million player option. He didn’t need to do it, especially after the way his time with the club had gone. By that point in the season, Yabusele had fallen out of the rotation, racking up occasional DNPs and playing very sparing minutes even when he did enter the game. The Knicks have the option of presenting Yabusele with a ring and he fully deserves one after the role Alvarado had in bringing the city it’s first NBA championship in 53 years.
Recently, Yabusele spoke with as.com about his decision to leave the NBA again. “I spoke with my wife, my agents, my mentor. It’s an important decision. And it’s not something I’m saying easily; it was a long process, there were many questions.” Yabusele said. “I remembered French teammates who had gone through the same thing, who were there without playing for years. I can’t do that. And it was me who decided to leave, not them. I prefer to be the one who decides .”
On his time in New York, the reserve big man did open up about how tough it sometimes was. While he still has fond memories of the city, he did candidly say, “In New York, after two or three bad games, they’re already asking to trade you”.
On conversations he had with head coach Mike Brown about his playing time and role, he revealed that, “[Mike] explained that he wanted his five starters to play 38 minutes each, plus Mitch, who deserved his 26 minutes. And that already gives you an idea of what to expect. What puzzled me most was what the coach didn’t mention about others . He talked to me about the five starters, he talked to me about Mitch, but he didn’t talk about Landry, he didn’t talk about Jordan Clarkson, he didn’t talk about all the others who were also there. If you add all of them up, technically there are no minutes left. So I understood very early on that it was going to be a very complicated year.”
One interesting point was what Yabusele said about the offensive system the Knicks were running. “ What’s curious is that when I was there, if we had moved the ball like we did at Real Madrid, a bit like in Europe, moving it around, shifting it … New York would have finished first in the conference ,” Yabusele said.
The Knicks did not finish first in the regular season, but did hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy, thanks in part to adopting a more ball-movement and player-movement oriented offense for large portions of the postseason.
Yabusele concluded the interview by speaking briefly about public enemy number one in New York, Victor Wembanyama. Having played with Wembanyama on the national team, Yabusele knows him and his game well. “It’s a problem with no apparent solution. He’s still so far from his best. Every summer you come back, play against him again, and he has a new trick up his sleeve. Just when you think you know him, something new comes out.”
Yabusele, the player, ended up being a disastrous mistake, arguably for both sides. But he seems to be a genuinely selfless, caring, and team-first kind of guy. While it’s unfortunate that the signing, which at the time brough excitement, didn’t work out. Fans should be thankful for his gesture, and root for him as he becomes one of the top three highest paid players in European basketball.
