New York Knicks: A recent history of draft lottery night
The New York Knicks tied for the best odds in the 2019 draft lottery. How did their luck transpire in previous lotteries?
The New York Knicks will eye their draft lottery luck on Tuesday, May 14, when the ping pong balls determine their fate for the first overall pick. They have not achieved this since the 1985 selection show when Patrick Ewing landed to them and turned everything upside down.
The lottery history extends far beyond that, however. Most of it transpired in the 2000s, but some of it carried into the 2010s, after a three-year playoff run with Carmelo Anthony and Co.
Each lottery they were involved in, the Knicks had a chance to reclaim the No. 1 pick. Over their past five tries, though, they all failed.
How did their lottery spot change in these drafts? Who did they select? Did they pick succeed? Let’s take a look:
2018: Remained at ninth overall
It starts with the most recent draft lottery night, in 2018, when the New York Knicks had a 6.1 percent chance to land the first overall pick, which became Deandre Ayton to the Phoenix Suns. There was a chance to move up, but that did not happen.
The Knicks entered with the ninth-best odds and left lottery with the ninth pick. This eventually became Kevin Knox, the touted one-and-done forward from Kentucky.
Knox was projected as a lottery pick at the time, so it did not play out as a poor pick; and despite hiccups as a rookie, the 19 year old still won the Rookie of the Month in December and flashed 15-to-20-point scoring upside.
Intriguing players were missed on with the top eight picks. Ayton, Luka Doncic, Trae Young, Marvin Bagley III, Jaren Jackson, Mohamed Bamba, Wendell Carter Jr. and Collin Sexton filled out these spots, and each player either had a good rookie year or showed enough promise to be quality NBA contributors.
Knox can do the same, but his 37 percent shooting was by far the lowest of the top 10 and the lottery, not counting the injured Michael Porter Jr.
With one year passed, labeling Knox is premature. Landing higher in the lottery could have provided a different player for New York, but then they might not have Mitchell Robinson.