New York Knicks: Hypothetically ‘rigging’ the draft for Zion Williamson
Opinion: What if the NBA, hypothetically, rigged the lottery for the New York Knicks to draft Zion Williamson?
March Madness has just begun, most of us have filled out our brackets, trying to win the big prizes out there. By the end of the first day, there will be some upset that no one sees coming, making us scream and rip-up our brackets, not wanting to watch any more games as we have no shot of winning. Still, there are few fans that will be watching the tournament closely with the hopes that Duke star Zion Williamson will end up on their team. I am here to break some bad news, Williamson will end up with the New York Knicks — hypothetically, if the NBA were to ever rig the lottery.
(NBA Draft conspiracies existed since the 1985 selection show. This is a speculatory conspiracy theory for the 2019 NBA Draft.)
This year the draft format has changed as the bottom three teams have the same odds. The Phoenix Suns, New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers all have the same chances to landing the No. 1 pick. Would the NBA let a generational talent like Williamson end up in a place like Phoenix or Cleveland, no offense to those fans or cities?
Forbes comes out with their most valuable franchises every year, as usual the Knicks are No. 1 for the fourth year in a row at $4 billion. In comparison the Cavs were 24th and the Suns were 17th last year. Just two years ago, Kristaps Porzingis was the seventh highest selling jersey in the NBA and last year he was fifth before he got hurt.
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Just to compare teams, the Cavs with LeBron James last year were the 2nd most popular in team merchandise, while the Knicks were fifth. The Cavs went to the Finals, while the Knicks only won 29 games. Despite winning 29 games, the Knicks still played on Christmas Day, which is usually coveted to the best teams.
As you can see the Knicks clearly are one of the most iconic and most popular teams in the NBA, despite making the playoffs once in the last 7 years. You can also look at past teams like the Heat, with their ‘Big 3’ and the Warriors ‘Big 4,’ they both were such attractions that they helped sell-out road arenas as everyone wanted to see them play. This helped the smaller market teams sell more tickets, whenever these big teams were in town. Even this year, Duke games were the most coveted tickets in all of sports. Everyone wanted to see Williamson.
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Just adding a player like Williamson, who could infuse winning to that franchise, would take the NBA to another level. The Celtics are good again with their young talent, the Lakers have LeBron, now if the Knicks get Williamson, the NBA could go through another golden age of basketball. Just for popularity sake and the revenue opportunities, its a no-brainer for the NBA to get Zion to NY. Of course “wink wink,” they can’t come out and say that.