Since James Dolan has taken over, the Knicks have been notoriously known to not be very good at drafting. The Kristaps Porzingis, Landry Fields, Damyean Dotson, and David Lee picks are the only picks that I remember that were steals. The rest have either been busts, we traded them away, traded our pick away, or are still young and we don’t know what their careers will look like yet. However, this year has to be a year the Knicks knock it out of the park with their drafting. The Knicks are projected to have the 6th, 27th, and 38th pick. I am not going to get into the 27th and 38th pick because the draft can be very unpredictable with how players who are drafted later turn out, however, the 6th pick is very interesting. If the Knicks don’t get lucky or unlucky in the lottery and stay at the 6th pick, the Knicks are going to think long and hard about their pick.
There are two ways the Knicks could go about their pick, either taking the best player available or taking the best point guard available. The reason the Knicks should look at taking the best player available is that even though RJ is still a rookie, we don’t know if he will be a player that can carry his team like JA and Zion did this year. For the Knicks, we don’t have that superstar yet, and to become a halfway decent team once again, you need to find one of those gems. The reason the Knicks should look at only PG’s because you need to help spread the floor for RJ and Mitch. The Knicks should especially take a look at a great pick and roll point guard who can shoot. I say this because the shooting will help get Mitchell Robinson more open on the pick and rolls. If you have someone that can shoot, both defenders can’t slouch on the point guard because he would then drill the shot, leading to Mitch being open or guarded by a smaller player. Also, we need a PG because we need someone not named Julius Randle to hold the ball and who can run the offense around RJ. RJ needs more touches and getting a PG that can run the offense would be very beneficial to his growth.
Here are some names that are in consideration if the Knicks are looking at a PG: Cole Anthony, Killian Hayes, Lamelo Ball, Tyrese Haliburton. These are guys that can become good shooters in the NBA that can also be the primary ball-handler.
The Knicks will have a big decision to make when the draft occurs, one that can change the franchise for good or for bad.
