If not in Dallas, J. J. Barea wouldn’t mind being a Knick

There are some things you can just easily picture in your mind. Like J.J. Barea coming off the bench for the New York Knicks to run Mike D’Antoni’s offense.

We’re not saying it’s going to happen — smart money says he stays a Maverick — but the Puerto Rican point guard told the New York Daily News he would consider playing at Madison Square Garden.

“I always said the Knicks would be a great second option (after Dallas). I love the city. I love the way they’re playing now, their style of play with D’Antoni, the players over there,” said Barea, who was in Punta Cana to support slugger David Ortiz’s annual charity golf tournament. “We’ll see. I know Carmelo more than Amar’e. I think after (D’Antoni became coach), I said, ‘That would be a great fit for me.’”

It would. Just don’t pay too much.

Barea tops my list of “free agents most likely to get overpaid based off a playoff performance.”

Barea is not a bad point guard, he’s average. He looked great driving the wide-open lanes in the playoffs because the Mavericks had shooters around him to space the floor. Andrew Bynum got frustrated having to rotate off Tyson Chandler to try and stop Barea, only to have Barea pass to a diving Chandler or kick out to a shooter (not that Bynum’s reaction should be tolerated). But do the Knicks have those kind of guys to go around Barea?

Barea can be a nice little spark but he’s an undersized defender, not a great midrange shooter, can turn the ball over a little too much. He’s not bad, but he’s not a star. Just don’t pay him like a starter and he’ll work out well.