The Big Apple Gets a New Seed: Knicks Draft Kevin Knox With 9th Pick

With the 9th pick in the draft, the New York Knicks selected Kevin Knox from Kentucky. The 6’9 freshman, who was strangely met with booing when his name was called, was ranked as fourth among wing players in the draft. It was no huge secret that the Knicks were interested in getting their hands on a solid small forward, preferably that could shoot. The Knicks will likely plant Knox right into the starting rotation once the season kicks off. The big question facing the “city that never sleeps” is whether or not they picked up a gem that the rest of the league managed to sleep on?

Meet the New Guy

The Knicks’ newest rookie is a born scorer. Knox averaged 15.6 points along with 5.4 rebounds per game in his freshmen year with Kentucky. At 6’9, 215 pounds, Knox is a big presence in the paint. Though he can be streaky at times, there is no doubt that Knox can get hot from the midrange, or even from beyond the arch. Knox can pull up or spot up, putting the ball in the hoop at a high rate. That is exactly why the Knicks recruited him.

The biggest impact that Knox can make for this team, though, is his defense. While Knox’s defensive presence wasn’t his shining factor in college, he’s not without promise. With some guidance, there is no reason why Knox can’t develop into a solid defender for New York. He is a big body with a long wing span and a lot of strength. If Knox learns how to hone that strength and get his defensive footwork down, he can really be scary for the Knicks on that side of the ball.

Fitting Knox into the Rotation

A young wing player, such as Knox, fits directly into New York’s vision of a young developed core. More pointedly, the Knicks have been looking for a replacement small forward for almost a year now. Michael Beasley was brought in to fill the Carmelo Anthony sized void, but he wasn’t consistent enough to make it work. This upcoming season, with Kristaps Porzingis still injured, the Knicks will probably move Beasley to the power forward position. Thus, Knox will get a lot of playing time to get his feet wet against top contenders.

Fitting Knox into the starting rotation, especially when Porzingis returns, will give the team a lot of size and perimeter presence.  Adding Knox to the mix of comprised of Tim Hardaway Jr. and Porzingis will give New York another decent shooter that can be a threat from anywhere outside of the paint. On the other side, Frank Ntilikina provides length and defensive prowess to the rotation, something that Knox can add to. If uses his size to his advantage, he could turn out to be another solid rim protector for the Knicks. Lastly, Knox could continue the Knicks’ rebounding dominance that they put on display last season.

In Conclusion

There will be a lot of expectations that fall on this young prospect. Obviously, the Knicks want to win and they chose Knox because they believe that he could help them do that. With his size, strength, and length, Knox could really be deadly for New York. Knox can he right a defensive wrong that has long plagued the Knicks’ game plan. With a lot of work and some great coaching, Knox can make it rain in the Garden.