The New York Knicks are always interesting to monitor with regard to the NBA Draft and the 2018 edition is no different. With Kristaps Porzingis still recovering from a torn ACL, the team should, at least in theory, be prioritizing the future over the results of the 2018-19 season and the Knicks have the No. 9 overall pick in which to improve their overall standing.
One year after selecting Frank Ntilikina in the top 10, the prevailing wisdom is that the Knicks now see him as something other than a point guard, leaving many to speculate that New York could center its attention on Trae Young, Collin Sexton or Shai Gilgeous-Alexander with their lottery pick this year. However, ESPN’s Jonathan Givony notes that the Knicks are now “widely assumed” to place Kevin Knox at the top of the heap — provided they don’t make a trade.
All signs point to Kevin Knox at No. 9. It's becoming widely assumed in NBA circles that he's the top option for the Knicks given who is there. Carter and Porter are also high on the Knicks' draft board, but they might not fall this far. ESPN Mock Update: https://t.co/JZ0l0l1Ksd
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) June 21, 2018
It should be noted that Marc Berman of the New York Post reported on Wednesday that Villanova forward Mikal Bridges is”the favorite to be the Knicks’ selection with the ninth pick” and conflicting information definitely exists here. Still, both players make sense to some degree and, of course, neither occupies the point guard position.
Knox is a very interesting combo forward prospect, particularly given that it is tough to evaluate his college tape. Kentucky played without much space on the floor and, at times, the 6’9 freshman played shooting guard (yes, you’re reading that correctly) and was not placed in optimal positions. Still, Knox is an unfinished product at this juncture and the Knicks (and other suitors) would be banking on real development from the youngster with a 7’0 wingspan.
While the Knicks have been unpredictable in the past, a future frontcourt that includes both a healthy Porzingis and Knox would, at least on paper, be versatile and quite talented. It remains to be seen if New York will actually pull the trigger but Knox is a player that seems to be garnering a ton of interest from a front office located in the nation’s biggest market.
