Assessing the Knicks’ options on NBA Draft night 2022
The Knicks face a pivotal evening, with multiple options on the table utilizing their 11th pick in the draft. What will New York do?
In mere hours, the 2022 NBA Draft will commence, with the New York Knicks holding the 11th pick.
After the Knicks made the playoffs in 2021, the hope was that they would not have to focus on the lottery for years to come. Unfortunately, that is not the case, so now their sights have been set on the draft, at least for the moment.
In the past year, the Knicks have actually found some talented assets outside of the lottery, such as late first rounders Immanuel Quickley (2020) and Quentin Grimes (2021) and even second rounders like Jericho Sims and Miles McBride (both 2021).
While the Knicks can still find good pieces later in the draft this year, we will just focus on their lottery pick, as typically those picks are expected to have a more immediate impact.
After years of botched picks, the Knicks finally seem to have something in their latest lottery picks, RJ Barrett (2019) and Obi Toppin (2020). This year, they will look to keep that stretch of good lottery picks going.
The last thing they would want to do is have another Kevin Knox, so they will almost certainly be very careful with who they select in this year’s draft. Here are some things they can do to ensure they get the right guy for the squad.
Trade the 11th pick in a package for a higher pick
The Knicks could really use some of the help that’s offered at the top of the lottery. They also have a few veteran assets they are willing to move on from (Kemba Walker, Alec Burks, Nerlens Noel, etc.). New York’s front office could very well consider trading up in the draft with their pick as well as shipping off some of the veteran pieces.
A good candidate for the Knicks to trade with would be the Sacramento Kings. As of this writing, they own the No. 4 overall pick in this year’s draft. The player out of this draft class that could give the Knicks the most help is projected to land in the top five, Purdue’s Jaden Ivey.
Ivey is a guard with great athleticism and a high will to pass when swallowed up by defenders. His type of explosiveness off dribble penetration is something the Knicks could use out of the back court. He also would fulfill the playmaking hole the Knicks have. He’s a very good fit for this young New York team, with his aforementioned athleticism providing faster pace to a team that ranked near the bottom in that category last season. Here’s a full player profile on Ivey done by Prez.
With Sacramento in control of the fourth pick while already having an influx of young guards on their roster, trading up with them to have a better chance at drafting Ivey would make the most sense for the Knicks. The Knicks have players that the Kings could make useful now that they have two superstars on their team, as well as excess draft picks to sweeten the deal. The Knicks really need an explosive player like Ivey, so a trade could really benefit both teams.
Given that trading for a top five pick is usually very pricey, the Knicks will certainly have to be willing to go all-in for this pick. In addition to offering up some of the vets, they may have to throw in a more consistent rotation piece like Evan Fournier or even Julius Randle to be able to convince Sacramento to give up such a high pick. They will also have to fight with other teams vying for that pick such as Indiana. Definitely something the Knicks have to carefully consider.
Stand pat and use the 11th pick
Here’s a straightforward and more conservative approach: Use the pick that was given to them on the night of the draft lottery.
Given that this year’s draft class is very top heavy and not offering the most generational talent, this is where trading away future draft picks and current players for a higher pick this year could backfire, especially if the team does not perform well in the next few seasons. There are guys that are projected to be in the back end of the lottery selections that can still be a decent fit for the Knicks.
New York comes into the draft with a painfully obvious need: a playmaking point guard. Unfortunately, this is maybe the draft most bereft of point guard talent in the last 10 years or so.
This year’s draft class is, however, full of scoring talent, so a good alternative could be to go after a solid 3-and-D guard or an off-ball scoring wing to play as a reserve. A plus that comes with using that alternative is that you can take someone that already has an elite skillset and develop them into a solid playmaker, further adding to that skillset. We saw that with Immanuel Quickley, who was drafted 25th overall in 2020, in the second half of this past season.
Dyson Daniels is a young guard that can provide length and tough perimeter defense at the guard position. Bennedict Mathurin can be a solid off-ball scorer with good defense. Johnny Davis could end up becoming a steal after falling down in latest mock boards.
These are just a handful of guys that already provide a big impact in scoring and defense. Developing them into a good playmaking guard will enhance their skill set, which can turn a late lottery pick into a gem. Even if the Knicks’ biggest need is not in the 3-and-D department, it’s always nice to have a reliable scoring option and a lockdown defender until you further develop those point guard skills, that way they can still provide a positive impact.
If you want to learn more about each individual prospect that can possibly become a Knick on draft night, check out these draft profiles done by our very own Prez right here in this Twitter thread.
Trade the 11th pick for an established player
This part gets even trickier. It reverts back to the idea of trading away the 11th pick for somebody else, but this time it would be for a proven star player that could get the Knicks over the hump.
Given the talent of the young guys on the current roster, the expectation is that the Knicks will be much more aggressive in building a contender than in previous years.
A player that has come up in recent talks is Pacers guard Malcolm Brogdon. Brogdon is a former Rookie of the Year Award winner who has lately been marred by injuries. He has exceptional scoring abilities, as he recorded a 50-40-90 season in 2019. He’s also a solid playmaker, averaging 4.8 assists in his career, including 7.1 APG in 2019. He would instantly provide offense to a Knicks team that is looking for just that.
Despite all these good attributes of Brogdon, there is a major catch: he recently signed a two-year, $45 million extension that kicks in next season. Given his recent injury history, trading the lottery pick for Brogdon would be a huge risk that the Knicks would have to be willing to take. It would be a major bummer if they were to pick up his lucrative contract and he missed time with an injury.
There are other options that exist for the Knicks, such as John Wall and Russell Westbrook. However, similar to Brogdon, these guys are owed lots of money, and they are also past their prime, so it’s another high risk situation. The Knicks should be especially cautious when considering moving the draft pick elsewhere, as the last thing they would want is to have another Kemba Walker situation on their hands, made worse by the fact that they used a valuable asset to pick up an unproductive vet.
Final thoughts
The NBA Draft is the first sign of new beginnings for lots of NBA teams. The Knicks are determined to get back to the playoffs and shake off the misfortunes of the 2021-22 season. Making the right decision on draft night is just the start of the process to re-enter the competitive landscape. We will see in a very short while if they will in fact make the right decision.
