The New York Knicks have already interviewed a number of prospects at the NBA Combine that they're considering with the No. 9 overall pick, including former Oklahoma point guard Trae Young.
While New York is believed to be focused on picking a small forward with the selection, The Ringer's Kevin O'Connor reports that the Knicks have "the hots" for Young and may draft him if he's still available at No. 9
Multiple league sources told me that the Knicks have the hots for the Oklahoma point guard, so the interest is mutual. It’s easy to understand why: Young is an ideal fit alongside Frank Ntilikina, whom the Knicks view as a 2-guard who can occasionally run the offense. Ntilikina could space the floor to allow Young to work his magic on the ball; conversely, Young could race through screens off the ball to get open for 3s while Ntilikina initiates the offense. It’d be a perfect pairing to ease the workload on Kristaps Porzingis.
Scouts are torn on Young, who became the first player in college basketball history to lead the country in both points and assists in a single season but was largely inefficient over the last two months of the season. The Knicks, though, believe that his incredible quickness, vision, and ability to create shots for himself will allow him to become a superstar.
For his part, Young's father says Trae wants to play for the Knicks.
"That's what Trae lives for. He lives for that type of stuff. Just think about it: He's probably the most talked about, most publicized kid in this draft and he's been through it all," Young's father, Ray, told the Daily News. "Trae's been scrutinized to the point that he has thick skin. None of that stuff is going to bother him. He was like the darling of college basketball for three months, and then the last month-and-a-half he turned into a bad guy, for some reason.
"So for him to be in a market like New York and understand that it's all about winning — and if you don't win, there'll be some scrutiny — he's already been through it."
However, it's unlikely that Young is still on the board when the Knicks pick. He is currently projected to go No. 6 overall to the Orlando Magic in our post-lottery mock draft. The Cleveland Cavaliers are also known to have interest at No. 8.
Young averaged 27.4 points, 8.7 assists, and 3.9 rebounds per game for the Sooners.
Stick with us in the Chat Sports app and download today. Plus, like Chat Sports on Facebook so you know when we go live with the latest NBA news!
Back to the New York Knicks Newsfeed