During the 2018 NBA Draft lottery on Tuesday evening, it saw the New York Knicks land the ninth overall selection in next month’s draft.
According to Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News, the Knicks are wasting no time in bringing prospects as Trae Young’s father stated that his son is set to meet with the team ay in what could one of his first meeting with an NBA organization.
The Knicks are scheduled to interview Young on Friday, according to his father, and the family has made no secret that New York is a desirable destination. A match, however, is reliant on two fluid factors — whether Young is available when the Knicks pick at No. 9, and whether the Knicks would choose a point guard despite their glaring need for a small forward.
Young is coming off a stellar lone season at Oklahoma where he finished leading the nation with both 27.4 points and 8.7 assists per contest while also setting the Big 12 record with 811 points scored in conference play. His performance on the court helped him earn a consensus First-Team All-American selection, a First-Team All-Big 12 nod, Big 12 Freshman of the Year, and the Wayman Tisdale award that is given to the National Freshman of the Year voted by the United States Basketball Writers Association.
The 20-year-old is regarded as one of the best scorers in this year’s draft class that can be an effective threat from beyond the arc along with possessing great court vision. However, he has struggled defensively at times due to his size and lack of true athleticism that could present a problem at the next.
Although this may just be a standard interview process with Young, there doesn’t appear to be a pressing need to add another guard to the mix as the Knicks have six on the roster in Trey Burke, Frank Ntilikina, Emmanuel Mudiay, Tim Hardaway Jr., Courtney Lee, and Ron Baker.
