Trae Young: 'It would be a blessing' to be drafted by Knicks
The last two decades of New York Knicks basketball has not been pretty. The once-flagship NBA franchise has a .426 winning percentage since reaching the Finals in 1999, and outside of Kristaps Porzingis, their draft history features names like Jordan Hill and Frederic Weis.
As usual, that puts extra onus on the Knicks to draft well this summer. And with New York currently slotted at the ninth pick in the pre-lottery order, hype is building with Oklahoma sensation Trae Young right in their wheelhouse.
Young, for one, is excited at the possibility.
"If I'm able to get drafted by the New York Knicks, it would be a blessing," Young said on ESPN Wednesday, via the Daily News' Stefan Bondy. "Being in the Basketball Mecca, that's one of the biggest markets in the league, if not the biggest. But I feel like I went through it all this year with the media, the ups and downs."
Young's meteoric rise as a Sooners freshman drew comparisons to the flamethrower game of Stephen Curry; in 32 NCAA contests, he averaged 27.4 points on 36 percent 3-point shooting. The pro game is much different, however, and Young's shortcomings in terms of size and athleticism have some pundits raising questions.
"If I'm blessed enough to play in New York City, I would be honored and I would be willing to get to work and help that franchise win," he added.
Young's theatrics could play well on Broadway, but his highly touted production could also flop. Young would likely benefit most from joining a contending team with defined roles, rather than handle the expectation to come in and immediately shoot the lights out. The Knicks won't be a deep contender next season either; Porzingis is expected to be out until December at the earliest, placing extra pressure on the team's first-rounder.
Before Porzingis and David Lee, the last player to be drafted by the Knicks and become an All-Star for them was Mark Jackson in 1989.