Knicks Draft: Tyrese Haliburton ready for pressure of New York

Draft prospect Tyrese Haliburton is not worried about the pressure of playing in New York, if he happens to be drafted by the New York Knicks.

NBA lottery prospect Tyrese Haliburton could find his way to the New York Knicks depending on how the ping pong balls fall and scouting reports shake out leading up to the 2020 NBA draft. When asked about the possibility of joining the Knicks and playing under the pressure of the Madison Square Garden lights, the Iowa State guard embraced the challenge.

"“Being in New York, it’s always talked about, the pressure of being a Knick,” Haliburton told Rachel Nichols on The Jump on Tuesday. “But I feel like no matter where I go, the pressure I put on myself is more than I’ll get from anywhere. For me, no matter where I’m at, I feel like that pressure is prominent and it’ll be more from me than anywhere. So I’m ready to play anywhere.”"

Haliburton is projected to be selected anywhere from 2-7 in the upcoming draft, depending on which mock you trust most. A recent mock released by The Ringer pegs Haliburton as the third overall pick, calling him a “genius playmaker who can be a major building block of a contending team.”

The 6-foot-5 point guard was named to the second team All-Big 12 team this past season, playing as a sophomore. He averaged 15.2 points on an efficient 50.4% shooting from the field. He is a solid three-point shooter (get excited Knicks fans!) with 42.6% accuracy from downtown over his college career.

The Knicks have reportedly been focusing on drafting a lead guard to help “unlock” the potential of RJ Barrett and Mitchell Robinson. They have done extensive homework on New York product Cole Anthony.

Over the past week, Knicks president Leon Rose has beefed up his scouting staff, considerably, by adding former Jazz scouting guru Walt Perrin, along with pro scout Frank Zarrin. Obviously, with the arrival of Perrin, who will take on the role of head of college scouting, any previous reporting on the Knicks draft interests could change.

The Knicks are currently slotted with the sixth highest lottery odds based on where they were in the standings when the NBA season was suspended. The NBA Lottery, an annual celebration for Knicks fans these days, was originally scheduled for Tuesday, but was postponed, along with the Draft Combine, indefinitely.

The NBA Draft is still scheduled for June 25, although it will most certainly be rescheduled as the league figures out how to finish the 2019-20 season, it if is possible to do so at all.