New York Knicks: A recent history of draft lottery night

2008: Fell from fifth to sixth overall

The 2008 NBA Draft provided Derrick Rose, Russell Westbrook, Kevin Love, Eric Gordon, Brook Lopez, playoff shot-making DJ Augustin, Serge Ibaka and Nicolas Batum. It also gave Michael Beasley, OJ Mayo, Joe Alexander and Anthony Randolph.

In the middle of it, Danilo Gallinari joined the New York Knicks with expectations as their highest lottery pick since Kenny Walker in 1986.

The Knicks had the fifth-best odds in the 2008 lottery but fell to sixth. Love went to the Memphis Grizzlies, who traded him to the Timberwolves in a pick-swapping package for Mayo.

Gallinari was not a sexy pick, as the international draftee who no casual fan saw play. Gordon was still on the board and both Lopez brothers were available. Plus, Rose and Beasley received much pre-draft hype and Westbrook and Love were touted for their work at UCLA.

An injury-riddled rookie year removed Gallinari for all but 28 games. He returned with a productive 15.1 points as a sophomore, which basically fell in line with his now-career 15.9 points per game as an 11-year veteran.

However, in Year Three, the Knicks used the Italian forward as a headliner to acquire Carmelo Anthony from the Denver Nuggets. Along with other young pieces, it cleared the cupboard so New York could land their superstar for the next six years.

Gallinari faced a ton of injuries in Denver, including missing all of 2013-14 with a torn ACL. He only topped 60 games twice, as well, before leaving in 2017 and signing with the Los Angeles Clippers.

This pick was used towards something grander, but if Gallinari stayed healthy and became a top scorer, he could have made this a trade for the Knicks to regret down the road. Instead, he was just among the players moved for a franchise-leading star.