Knicks 8th Overall Pick: Isaac Okoro
When team president Leon Rose brought his buddy Tom Thibodeau to New York, one of the finer details of the hire was that the former president of basketball operations in Minnesota wouldn’t have full say on his assistant coaching staff—a sign that the front office plans on taking a heavy hand in making personnel decisions, not just on the court, but along the sideline.
Does this mean Thibs is locked out from offering his opinion on players? We should hope not. One of the advantages to the fact that Thibodeau and Leon Rose have a prior relationship should be their ability to communicate in executing on a common vision.
According to the New York Post, one area where we might see Thibs’ influence is in the 2020 NBA Draft. Could the Knicks decide to ignore positional need and select Auburn swingman Isaac Okoro to fit the style of their hard-nosed coach?
Okoro might not fall to the Knicks at eight, but if he does, he could be the best player available at that position. When asked about playing for the Knicks, the Auburn star sounded intrigued.
"“I know the Knicks have a great organization, they have a lot of young players right now,” Okoro said about the possibility of playing for the Knicks (via Forbes). “Possibly playing with the Knicks would be a great opportunity for me. I know that I could come into the team and play a role that the coach needs me to play. I know that they have a new coach in Tom Thibodeau and he’s a very defensive-minded coach. I feel like me coming, it would be a great opportunity.”"
While Okoro wouldn’t solve the Knicks’ problems at point guard or shooting, these are two areas they could improve later in the draft or via free agency, especially if they feel like Okoro would be a steal late in the lottery.
Rose and Thibodeau have a lot of work to do to turn the Knicks into contenders again. It might start by drafting a player known for intensity.