Now that the NBA Draft is two nights long, teams have time to make trades between days. The New York Knicks were one of those teams. They traded the No. 31 pick to the Houston Rockets, along with the No. 55 pick, in exchange for picks No. 39 and No. 53, as well as a 2029 second-rounder. Houston selected Ohio State guard Bruce Thornton, and in his first Summer League game, he looked great.
Thornton helped the Houston Rockets to a 97-86 win over the Denver Nuggets on Friday night. In the process, he churned out a pretty monster stat line. In 35:06 of playing time, Thornton finished the night with 27 points, three rebounds, three assists, and three steals while shooting 7-of-18 from the floor and 3-of-8 from behind the three-point line.
It was the type of performance that might have Knicks fans wishing they took him instead of trading the selection to the Rockets.
The Knicks could have had Bruce Thornton
The Knicks have done a good job of re-filling out their roster this summer after winning the 2026 NBA Championship. They’ve managed to bring most of their guys back, which doesn’t always happen.
New York has re-signed Mohamed Diawara, Landry Shamet, and Jose Alvarado this summer. They also brought in Andre Drummond to replace Mitchell Robinson, who left in free agency, signing with the Boston Celtics.
The Knicks’ core is completely intact, too. Jalen Brunson is still in town. So are Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, and Josh Hart. The team is back. But they could have added more.
Thornton seems like the type of guard who could provide some impactful minutes right away. But even if he isn’t, he wouldn’t have had to play right away in New York.
Right now, the Knicks don’t have a ton of youth on their roster. Diawara is young, as is Tyler Kolek, but if they had added a guy like Thornton, it could have helped them round out their bench from a youth perspective.
Instead, they traded the pick to the Rockets. They got some decent assets back in return, but Thornton would have been very helpful in a Knicks jersey moving forward, especially with how expensive the roster is.
Having a guy like Thornton on a cost-controlled contract would have been nice. He certainly showed out in his first Summer League game.
New York could have had Thornton, but they gave up the pick, and now, he’s in Houston.
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