PHILADELPHIA, PA - MARCH 28: Tim Hardaway Jr. #3 of the New York Knicks looks on during the game against the Philadelphia 76ers on March 28, 2018 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images)

When discussing the future of the New York Knicks, it’s important to remember shooting guard Tim Hardaway Jr.—who was better than advertised in 2017-18.

The New York Knicks stunned the basketball community by outbidding the Atlanta Hawks for restricted free agent Tim Hardaway Jr. by tens of millions of dollars. Atlanta was reportedly prepared to offer Hardaway in the neighborhood of $45 million.

In the end, Hardaway inked a four-year deal worth roughly $71 million with the Knicks—$26 million above the offer that Atlanta was expected to provide him with.

One could certainly debate whether or not team president Steve Mills should’ve paid such a hefty price. New York needed to offer more than the Hawks were willing to pay, but increasing the figure by more than $6 million per year was debatable.

Thankfully, Hardaway rewarded Mills’ faith with a strong 2017-18 season—even if the general population doesn’t want to accept that it was.

If you allow the narrative to be your source of information, Hardaway had an underwhelming 2017-18 campaign. He shot poorly from the field, was highly inefficient from beyond the arc, and didn’t exactly thrive on defense.

If you do a deeper dive into his first season back with the Knicks, however, Hardaway more than justified the first year of his $71 million contract.

Hardaway was tasked with playing out of position in 2017-18, as he spent 71 percent of his minutes at small forward. It was a product of what head coach Jeff Hornacek was given, as he had two starting-caliber shooting guards, Hardaway and Courtney Lee, and questionable talent at the 3-spot.

Prior to 2017-18, Hardaway had never played more than 36 percent of his minutes at small forward—and hadn’t exceeded nine percent since 2014-15.

Furthermore, Hardaway spent minimal time at 100 percent health during the 2017-18 campaign. A lower leg injury bothered him for most of the season, including the stretch of 20 consecutive games that he spent on the sidelines just as he was beginning to heat up in late November.

Nevertheless, Hardaway overcame adversity to produce what may have been his best season in the NBA—on both ends of the floor.

Hardaway, who turned 26 in March, set career-highs in points (17.5), rebounds (3.9), assists (2.7), steals (1.1), and three-point field goals made (2.3) per game. His efficiency was underwhelming, but that’s a somewhat misleading truth.

Between Oct. 29 and Jan. 30, Hardaway averaged 19.2 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.4 steals, and 2.6 three-point field goals made on a slash line of .456/.363/.802.

Those may sound like two oddly specific dates, but they’re appropriate to reference with context. Hardaway’s first four games of the season were dreadful, as he shot 13-of-49 from the field and 6-of-27 from beyond the arc.

Hardaway also had an abysmal stretch of seven games between Jan. 31 and Feb. 12, during which he shot an abhorrent .258/.114/.643.

It’s hard to remove that information from one’s memory, but that’s where the context applies. The first four games of an entire regular season only mean so much, and Hardaway’s rough patch in February was a direct result of his rushed return from injury.

In the 21 games that followed Hardaway’s early February woes, he averaged 19.7 points on a slash line of .448/.338/.891.

If one combines those 46 games, Hardaway averaged 19.5 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.2 steals, and 2.6 three-point field goals made on a slash line of .452/.351/.839. Those averages would certainly warrant the contract he was given, or at least something close to it.

The figures that torpedoed his slash line were from when he was rusty to begin the season, and when he rushed back from the injury that kept him out for more than 20 games.

The lesson those numbers teach us: Perhaps we should give Hardaway time to prove that he deserves the contract when healthy.

Furthermore, despite playing out of position, Hardaway ranked No. 20 amongst small forwards in Real Plus-Minus. That includes a ranking of No. 10 at the 3-spot in Offensive RPM at +1.28, and a subpar, but vastly improved Defensive RPM of -0.49.

That’s certainly not elite, but it’s a marked improvement over his figure of -1.08 from 2016-17—yet another sign of improvement.

Hardaway also posted the best BPM of his NBA career, and looked the part of a high-level complement to Kristaps Porzingis. Per Cleaning The Glass, the Knicks outscored opponents by 4.0 points per 100 possessions when Hardaway and Porzingis shared the floor.

Considering both Hardaway and Porzingis were banged up throughout the 2017-18 regular season, that’s an impressive number.

Thus, while Tim Hardaway Jr. must continue to improve, New York Knicks fans should pay him the respect of believing in his ability to continue to do so.