Draft-and-stash candidates the Knicks should try to trade for in the 2023 NBA Draft
The Knicks might not currently have a draft pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, but there are plenty of talented players they should consider pursuing and stashing — either on the bench or in the G League — if they’re able to trade back in.
This article has gone through a few design iterations. When the Knicks had two picks — back before the trade deadline — this article was originally planned out to investigate the sleepers in the late first that the Knicks could invest time in, and bring along slowly. The names that would have been considered there would be players like Rayan Rupert or Emoni Bates, extremely young players with a single very good NBA skill who really need some time in the oven (or on the bench, or in Westchester) to develop the rest of their skillset. However, now that the Mavericks’ pick (via the Porzingis trade) will not convey this year and the Knicks traded their other late first to Portland for Josh Hart, things have changed. A much more likely outcome is the Knicks trading into the back of the first round or even the second round. Knowing that, let's look at some potential stashes, should the Knicks trade into the draft.
First off, why should the Knicks consider a stash? For starters, they just don’t have many roster and rotation spots available. Additionally, just because a pick can have an immediate impact does not mean New York should forego the future upside granted by younger raw prospects to draft an older, ready-made product. Players like Kris Murray or Marcus Sasser might boost the shooting of the team to a more consistent level next year and provide Tom Thibodeau another older prospect to fine tune, and there is a use for that. However, that is not what we are here to discuss today. Maybe this is the year the Knicks finally pivot from older impact picks to upside gambles, in which case they would want players who can be “stashed,” and can benefit the Knicks in the future. This article will focus on players who can be a “pseudo-stash” like we discussed in my article last year.
So what are stashes and pseudo-stashes? Well, a normal stash is when a team drafts a player, and they remain with their overseas team - think Rokas Jokubaitis, one of the Knicks’ picks from two years ago who is still playing with Liga ACB powerhouse FC Barcelona Bàsquet in Spain. What is a pseudo-stash? It means that they are a player from either the G League, an overseas league, or a college basketball team that will come to the NBA but will not see a ton of play with the main squad. Despite that, they can get some serious play with the Westchester Knicks, as we saw from Deuce McBride and Jericho Sims as rookies. Other non-Knick examples recently include the Thunder drafting Ousmane Dieng at 12, the Heat drafted Nikola Jovic and having him shuttle between the Heat’s bench and the G League, the 76ers drafting Jaden Springer and letting him cook in Delaware for two years, or the Mavericks drafting Josh Green and slowly bringing him into the fold over three years before he broke out into a very useful role player. A final example is the patron saint of pseudo-stashes, Anfernee Simons, who was the youngest player in the league when he was drafted and played all of 141 minutes in the NBA as a rookie.
The G League kids: Sidy Cissoko and Leonard Miller
Depending on how the Knicks handle Obi Toppin this upcoming summer, there may be some serious minutes available at the 4. Two names to look at for bigger wings to fill that role are Sidy Cissoko and Leonard Miller.
Sidy Cissoko is a 6-foot-7 guard/wing from France playing for the G League Ignite. He had a significant role as a secondary ball handler next to projected top three pick Scoot Henderson, and he shoots well inside the arc (54%) while being slightly below average from the outside (30%). He has a 60% true shooting (TS%) with a solid 1.88 AST/TO ratio on 18% usage for a wing. Additionally, once Henderson went down with an injury, Sidy had the ball a bit more and his minutes, usage, assist percentage, and impact metrics all jumped up – a welcome sign.
Sidy also brings an element that the Knicks have not had in a while among their wings – off-the-charts athleticism.
Finally, in what is becoming a trend for G League prospects, he also improved defensively as the year went on, boasting a combined steal and block percentage of over 5%. The area where he stands to grow the most would be in his rebounding. Those numbers should be higher for a dude his size, especially since his grab-and-go potential in transition is incredible.
Leonard Miller is a name Strickland readers should recognize. I wrote about him in my article last year. Then, he was just an extremely raw prospect who had inserted his name into last year’s draft, but he ultimately decided to play with the G League Ignite this past season. A mystery man who was playing high-level organized ball for the first time. He has a good head on his shoulders, because taking the year with the Ignite was an excellent decision. The structure of the Ignite provided strong guidance and instruction. In Canadian high schools, he was an overwhelming physical force of a point forward, and the Ignite narrowed his role significantly: his job was to get rebounds, run the floor, play defense, and slash to the hoop.
He used his 6-foot-10 frame to expert levels to secure 11 rebounds a game while scoring 18 a game on 55% shooting, great numbers for a 19-year-old playing with professionals. His numbers look similar to when he played in the Nike Hoop Summit tournament with other top prospects, which is a great sign for him as he continues to play in tougher leagues. However, he does not take a lot of threes due to his very wonky form. I imagine the Knicks would want a more seasoned shooter, but you do not see many guys at his size doing the things that he does and moving the way he does. He recently pulled out of the NBA Combine, so there is a real chance someone already promised to draft him.
Hidden in Wemby’s shadow: Bilal Coulibaly
Another name that I think would interest this front office is Bilal Coulibaly.
Bilal, who played on the same team with Victor Wembanyama, is an incredibly athletic wing prospect that can finish well around the rim and play an impact role on defense. His physical profile is excellent at 6-foot-7 and a wingspan that is 7-foot-2, or even longer. Additionally, he won’t even be 19 on draft night. On top of the physical attributes, he isn’t just an unproven teenager. He scored 11 points a game on 7.7 attempts with a 61% TS%. He also boasts a free throw rate of .434. Not to mention he is a walking highlight reel.
Watching him play with Wemby, it feels like there is a little pick-and-roll talent there that can be developed as well, and maybe some 1-on-1 scoring potential down the line due to sheer athleticism.
This year’s NBL stud: Rayan Rupert
Finally, there is one more hot international prospect who may be there in the Knicks’ potential trade-in range. Let me introduce you to Rayan Rupert, a young 6-foot-7 wing with a 7-foot-3 wingspan who played in the NBL, on the same team that produced LaMelo Ball, Josh Giddey, and RJ Hampton.
He does not fit a lot of the archetypes that the Knicks look for in a draftee historically, but he is interesting nevertheless. He has a sizable frame, is good at rebounding, and has great defensive instincts. His scoring definitely needs work, which is a major reason that I don’t see the Knicks drafting Rupert, but there are not many coaches I would rather have teach him than Johnnie Bryant. The shot looks solid, albeit slow, so his off-the-dribble game will need work. But his athleticism can make an instant impact in a positive way as an energy and defense player, not unlike Deuce. His role would VERY limited in his first few years in the NBA, as a prototypical “two years away from being two years away” project type prospect. But if he can be had in the late first or second round, he is the kind of player who you could actually treat as a pseudo-stash in Westchester or an actual stash remaining in the NBL.
The hot new Mega Basket prospect: Nikola Durisic
Nikola Durisic is a 6-foot-8 wing from Belgium with impressive physical traits and some flashes of basketball brilliance. You may recognize the name Mega Basket as the place where 2-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic played his international ball before being immortalized with the Taco Bell 41st pick of the draft. They have also produced Heat rookie Nikola Jovic, Sixers draftee and Gonzaga standout Filip Petrusev, and Knicks Summer League legend Ognjen Jaramaz.
Durisic may not have the most eye-catching stat line, shooting just 41/22/71 this past season. He really needs some polish in 1-on-1 situations on offense. He can struggle against more physical defenders. You can build him up to those situations, however, because he operates well out of the pick-and-roll and as a connector, averaging four assists a game. The Knicks would like to see the turnover numbers come down, as well as have him be more impactful as an off-ball defender. The pedigree and talent are there; it would be up to the Knicks’ development staff to turn him into a realized version of himself
The youngest player in the entire class: GG Jackson
GG Jackson is a name fans of Tankathon.com will be familiar with. He was a top 10 pick coming into the year. He reclassified from the upcoming draft class into this one, decommitting from UNC next year to play for South Carolina this year in a move which now looks, perhaps, questionable.
His stats are not great but if you look at his astronomical USG% on a severely undermanned South Carolina team, it puts things into perspective. In addition to reclassifying, he will not even turn 19 until December. By all accounts, he should be in high school right now. However, his raw size and athleticism alone is arguably worth a pick in the draft.
Drafting him means that you believe in his potential as a shot-creating wing, and you believe you can work him along at a more proper pace than South Carolina did – after all, he was a top three recruit in his original class for a reason. This evaluation is based a lot more on the eye test and feel, because the numbers are not going to wow you: his efficiency is not great and the advanced metrics do not love him (and, in fact, may hate him). However, seeing him do the things he does at his size and age make you really believe if the flashes are indicative of some truly rare upside. You would have to put him in a tight development program to make sure he doesn’t waste any of that talent that he has, but perhaps now is the time for the Knicks to do just that.
The second-youngest player, who might be a unicorn: Noah Clowney
While all eyes were on potential top three pick Brandon Miller whenever Alabama was playing, the man doing the dirty work was another freshman named Noah Clowney. The 6-foot-10, All-SEC freshman forward averaged 10 points and eight rebounds a game while shooting an excellent 67% on 2-point attempts and functioning as a secondary rim protector from the power forward spot much of the time. He spent most of his time as a play finisher in a variety of roles. He can excel operating out of the dunker’s spot or as a rim runner due to his superb cutting and general feel on offense. His perimeter shooting needs to improve, but he isn’t scared to shoot them, averaging 7.2 3PA/100 possessions. He’s raw, but advanced metrics love him, and he was a winning player on a great team despite being very young.
I think his next step will be learning to attack the closeouts. I know that was not the game plan at Alabama, as they run a Mike D’Antoni-esque offense. Forty percent of his rim attempts were unassisted, which is a great stat if you are looking to find a creator at the big position (stat from Floor and Ceiling Youtube Channel). But the three has to fall at a consistent rate or his ceiling will be limited. But it’s a worthwhile investment. Clowney feels like a younger Obi Toppin. By that I mean he could play a role similar to how the Knicks currently deploy Obi, and I think he would thrive there. Because he is so young, there is also a decent possibility that as he bulks up he can spend some time at the 5 (a la Jaren Jackson Jr. in Memphis), where he might be the key to a 5-out offense. That is upside the Knicks should be interested in.
Finally, my stash rankings:
Sidy Cissoko
Leonard Miller
Bilal Coulibay
Noah Clowney
GG Jackson
Nikola Durisic
Rayan Rupert
