While Doug McDermott was surprised by his trade from the Oklahoma City Thunder to the New York Knicks, he believes it could be better for his career.

“I think it is [better] for me individually — a good place for me,’’ McDermott said. “Coach Hornacek runs some great stuff. We got some really good young players. I fit that mold and can grow with them. It’s one of the teams you dream of playing on.’’

“Obviously Doug can really shoot the ball,’’ Jeff Hornacek said. “His rotations are in the right spot. Most of the times you don’t have to be a great defender to be a great team guy on the defensive side. [Former Jazz coach] Jerry Sloan always said that about me about defense. … I never really thought I was a very good defensive player [but], I was always in the right spot. You look at some of the guys on our team: Doug, Ron [Baker], these guys that aren’t maybe the athletes some of the others are, just by being in the right spot 100 percent of the time is very helpful.’’

“It’s tough for anyone to follow in [Anthony’s footsteps] but to hear your name called in the Garden in the starting lineup was a dream come true,’’ McDermott said. “But it’s not about starting. I’ll be fine either way. I know I can provide shooting and play hard every night.’’