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For the first time in a long time, New York Knicks fans don’t have to rely on ping pong balls falling in the right direction due to the fact that they made the playoffs and got to miss the lottery altogether.
This doesn’t mean the Knicks are devoid of draft picks and they’ll actually be represented rather well if they end up keeping all four of the ones they have.
As it stands right now, the Knicks hold No. 19, 21, 32 and 58 in the upcoming draft, but there’s reason to believe they won’t be holding on to every one of them.
The Knicks are in unexpected territory where they are expected to win now, and with the window being that wide open for them, they’ll likely want to load up on a talent that can help out the team now versus having to develop anybody.
Because of this, there’s a growing belief that the Knicks could package their picks in an effort to move up further in the draft or even bundle them for a star player like Damian Lillard.
Could a Bundle Happen?
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Some opposing executives believe the Knicks won’t hang onto all of their picks. According to SNY’s Ian Begley, one executive thinks the Knicks could move way up in the draft if they wanted to.
“That would probably get you into the top eight, depending on what happens,” an opposing exec said according to Begley. This would of course mean the team would have to offer up all three of their early picks to do so, but it could be worth it to get a more marquee talent.
If the Knicks do want to swing for the fences and land a big name player like Lillard, they have plenty of draft capital to do so. As pointed out by Begley, the Knicks do have five first-round picks in the next three years, so a package of those will go a long way into enticing the Blazers into a trade.
With current odds showing the Blazers as having the best odds of landing Philadelphia 76ers star Ben Simmons in a trade, it would indicate the team is at least fielding calls.
If the Blazers want to drastically overhaul the team, perhaps a package of first-round picks is exactly the type of haul they need from the Knicks. Of course, nothing is certain for yet and we don’t know how the ping pong balls will fall in Tuesday’s draft lottery.
What If The Knicks Keep Their Picks?
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While it’s nice to speculate, there’s also a possibility the Knicks could just hang onto all of their picks. One member of an opposing organization doesn’t think that’s likely.
“I can’t see them carrying three rookies on the roster (next year),” a member of an opposing organization said this week according to Begley.
There are plenty of different players the Knicks could target in the draft, but going that deep won’t guarantee anybody they pick up will be an immediate contributor to the roster. Of course, every draft does have a diamond in the rough or two, so there’s no telling what the team will be able to snag if they keep all of their picks.
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