David Fizdale Is Putting A Lot On Kevin Knox’s Plate, And The Rookie Cannot Wait

If you didn’t know any better, you wouldn’t think that Kevin Knox is a rookie. Just this week, Knicks coach David Fizdale has said he wants to put Knox through a trial by fire, giving him the team’s toughest defensive assignment with the hopes of him learning via getting “his butt kicked.”

Fizdale also wants Knox, who turned 19 last month, to mentor fellow rookie Mitchell Robinson. Oh, and with Kristaps Porzingis’ return from an ACL tear still up in the air, the No. 9 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft will have to be a viable option on the offensive end of the floor, both as a scorer and as a playmaker.

The good news for the Knicks is that Knox, the son of former Florida State and Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Kevin Knox Sr., is ready to embrace this challenge. The rookie is excited to compete at this level, and even though he’s being asked to do a lot during his first year in the league, he wants to show out. He also understands that he’ll make his mistakes, but Knox is determined not to let them define him — instead, he wants to use them all as learning experience.

Knox sat down with Dime to talk about his mindset heading into the league. He also touched on how Kentucky prepared him for the NBA, how football is his “first love,” and how much he loves Subway.

Dime: Before we talk hoops, since it’s the fall, you were actually a big football player before you got into basketball, right?

Kevin Knox: Yes sir, I was. I played quarterback.

What was the scouting report on Kevin Knox the football player?

I was more of a dual-threat quarterback. I could really throw the ball, we did a lot of shotgun plays, a lot of reads and stuff like that. But I was really tall for a quarterback.

Seeing over the offensive line was quite the asset you had, no?

Oh yeah, that was pretty easy. The offensive line was definitely not 6’6. [laughs]

When’d you decide you wanted to focus on hoops instead of football and why?

Sophomore year of high school, I stopped playing football and I thought basketball was more of the sport to go. Football’s my first love, but basketball was the way I wanted to go. I could have went either way, but basketball is what I wanted to play and that’s the decision I made.

How did growing up a football player help get you to where you are today as a basketball player?

Football, you gotta know plays, you gotta know everyone. As a quarterback, you gotta know what everyone’s route is, what all the plays. You’ve got toughness in football, taking those hits and being able to get back up every time, being able to make reads and being able to move in the pocket, footwork, all of that kind of translates over to basketball. Playing football that long helped me a lot, those kinds of attributes in football.

Wild guess, you’re a big Florida State guy?

Yep, big Florida State guy.

One thing that’s been fascinating to me is that David Fizdale has said a lot of stuff about how much he wants to put on your plate. What have conversations been like with him about what he wants out of you during your first year in the league?

He’s definitely gonna challenge me. Offensively, he wants me to be able to play 1-4, make reads, stay in attack mode, be able to attack the basket and when [defenses] collapse, be able to find shooters, find open teammates. Make plays, basically, and be able to stay aggressive.

Defensively, he already said he’s gonna challenge me to guard the best player on everyone’s team, so I have to take that challenge. Getting better as a person, getting better as a player throughout the year, develop. Offensively and defensively, he just wants me to stay aggressive, stay in attack mode, stay mentally ready, and be a leader on the floor.

I’m glad you mentioned defense, because something he said that made me raise my eyebrows is that he’s going to put you on a lot of great players early on so you can get your “butt kicked and go through the lumps.” What have you two spoken about regarding what he thinks you’re capable of on the defensive end?

He knows that defensively, I can be really good. My size, length, ability to move laterally, he really thinks that I can pretty much defend 1-4. Like you said, he wants to challenge me. I’m gonna get my butt kicked some nights, some nights I’m gonna have guard the best players in the league, it’s not gonna go well for me, but it’s all a learning experience that’s gonna help me later on in my career.

Has he straight up said something to the extent of “I know you’re going to make mistakes, that’s fine, learn from them”?

Yeah, he’s already told me “Every shot’s not gonna go in, every play’s not gonna go the right way, but you’ve got 82 games, you’ve got 48 minutes, that’s a lot of basketball. One mistake is not gonna establish you in the league.” He just wants me to keep playing hard and move onto the next possession, because there’s a lot of possessions in basketball.

He also said he wants you to act as a mentor towards Mitchell Robinson. How do you plan on doing that, and what have you seen out of Mitchell in your time as teammates together?

Mitch is gonna be a great player in this league just because he really just wants to rebound, block shots, and dunk the basketball. I think he’s kind of a Clint Capela. Clint Capela is one of the best bigs in the league, Mitch is kinda similar to him. I think Mitch can do really well if he keeps his work ethic up and keeps working hard.

How does it feel to be someone who’s never played an NBA game, you’re 19 years old, but you already seem to have a coach who believes you can be a leader on defense and off the court right away?

It’s great to know you have a coach with that much confidence in you. Fizdale really loves me, the coaching staff really loves me, they want the best for me and they’re gonna challenge me every single game, every night, day in and day out. Every game, they want me to play my best, compete, and play hard. To be with a coach like that that has confidence in you, I’m pretty happy.

I gotta ask, who’s the one dude you’re most excited to check knowing you’re going to be put on the best players in the NBA?

Probably Kevin Durant. That’s somebody I really watched a lot of film growing up, watching Kevin Durant, watching his film, studying his game. To finally get the chance to play against him … not every game is gonna be the best game for me, so there are gonna be some games where he does kick my butt, but like I said, it’s all a learning experience. Go back and watch a lot of film just so I can learn from each game.

Is KD the guy you try to model your game after the most?

Yeah, when it comes to the NBA — high school, college, middle school, that’s a guy I really watched all the time and I tried to model my game after. It’s gonna be crazy to finally play against him.

Part of me was hoping you were gonna say [Clippers guard] Shai [Gilgeous-Alexander]. Is there any lighthearted trash talk with him or any of your other Kentucky guys about what’s gonna happen when y’all meet up on the floor?

Yeah, us Kentucky guys are all cool off the court. But when it comes to stepping between those lines, we’re no friends, we try to go at each other, we’re gonna compete. That’s something we did every day at Kentucky. We’re all cool off the court, but on the court, it’s all business.

Kentucky has that reputation of being a place that makes pros. What is the biggest thing that John Calipari taught you to get you prepped for coming into the NBA?

Just playing in that type of environment, playing outside of your comfort zone. He’s gonna challenge you every day, he’s gonna push you against the best people at Kentucky, he’s gonna put you on the spot, just get you ready for that next level. He’s gonna yell at you, he’s gonna scream at you, you’re gonna run a lot. It gets you mentally ready for games, because in the fourth quarter of games — or the second half in college — the last five minutes, you’re mentally ready for those games.

Is there one moment from your time at Kentucky that really stuck with you to get you ready for the NBA?

We had a lot of games this year where we were down at halftime, down in the last 10 minutes of a game, but we came back and won. That’s all mental stuff, to have that approach of going into those types of games, coming back and being able to win those games, that gets you ready for the NBA. You’re mentally ready, physically, and know how to lead and come back.

I won’t ask for specific names, but let’s say next summer you get the chance to pitch a big free agent or two to come to New York. What’s your pitch?

We’re young, we’re a group with a new coaching staff, a new management team, we’re trying to turn this whole organization around. We’ve got a lot of young pieces, guys ready to compete, make the playoffs, and win championships. The next few years — no matter who we get next year or if we get nobody — it don’t matter. I feel like this young team is really gonna make a push for the playoffs.

I’m guessing, based on that, you can already feel some type of special gravity to wearing a Knicks jersey, is that safe to say?

Yeah, I’m looking forward to wearing a Knicks jersey. Ever since I got drafted I wanted to play a regular season game, the day after the draft. I’m so anxious to get on the court, this whole summer, all this work I’ve put in. I’m ready to get on the court, get in front of the Madison Square Garden fans, and just play the game.

So you’re here with Subway, what do you have going on with them?

I came here to help them launch their new chipotle cheesesteak sandwich. It’s a great sandwich, they got a chipotle cheesesteak wrap, jalapeño wrap, honey chicken wrap, they’ve got a whole bunch of different stuff that they’re launching tomorrow. I jut came out here, supporting them, helped them launch this because Subway is one of my favorite sandwich stores growing up.

Everyone has, when they’re in high school or college, that fast food spot where it’s 10 p.m., you wanna grab a bite to eat, you hit it. Was Subway that place for you?

Yeah, I feel like Subway is a place everyone goes to. Late night, grab a meal. In college it’s very cheap, very convenient, you get to pick your own food, create your own sandwich. I feel like it’s something convenient for everyone. My family, we still eat it to this day. My little sister loves Subway, I love Subway, it’s just something that’s convenient. You grow up, eat Subway, now I get to be a part of this, it’s really great.

What’s the usual Kevin Knox Subway order?

The usual Kevin Knox Subway order is probably either the meatball sandwich or a chicken teriyaki, those two are my go-to sandwiches when I go to Subway.

Last question, and I know New Yorkers will be interested in this: Do you call a long sandwich a grinder, a hero, a hoagie, or a sub?

A long sandwich? I call it a … I’m probably gonna have to go with a sub. Yeah, I like a sub, I feel like it goes with a long sandwich. Hoagie can also go with a long sandwich, too.

Dime spoke to Knox on behalf of Subway.