Morning Knicks 7/6: Dreams of Devin Booker, 3&D Draft Prospects, and More
-Many disgruntled stars get linked to the Knicks, yet none seem to actually make their way to the Mecca. If fans want to continue to dream, they can look out West. Marc Berman of The New York Post reported that Devin Booker would be "the player to watch out for most" in terms of an unhappy stud potentially coming to New York. Leon Rose is Booker's old agent, and the former Kentucky Wildcat knows Booker well. The Suns have been bad during Booker's entire tenure, and there is some concern over his defense and ability to contribute to winning. But there's no doubting Booker's talent and scoring ability, and he made a leap as an All Star last year. It may be hard for Knicks fans to get their hopes up, but it seems like there's at least a small chance Booker is a Knick one day.
Berman had some other interesting points about potential stars that Rose could get. He said the same about Karl-Anthony Towns as he did with Booker, although hiring Tom Thibodeau would hurt the team's chances of acquiring Towns. Berman also noted that although Damian Lillard is perfectly happy in Portland, it is believed that if he were to ask for a trade, it would be to the Knicks or Lakers. You can read more about this, plus thoughts on point guards the Knicks could draft like LaMelo Ball, Tyrese Haliburton, and Kira Lewis Jr., in Berman's latest mailbag.
-It's no secret the Knicks are looking for shooter. The team's spacing this past season was dreadful, and it impeded the development of the younger players. With the 27th and 38th overall picks in the 2020 NBA Draft, Leon Rose has the perfect opportunity to find these complimentary players. Our own Kris Pusiainen wrote about one such player in Arizona's Josh Green. The freshman is a solid 3&D prospect with a nice feel for the game. Kris wrote about how Green could potentially fit with R.J. Barrett and the rest of the Knicks' young core.
Perhaps an even better 3&D draft candidate is Villanova's Saddiq Bey. The former Wildcat is an excellent shooter, solid defender, and can make plays in the pick and roll. While Bey's athleticism and upside doesn't reach that of other players, you know exactly what you're getting out of him: an awesome complimentary player. Kris wrote his draft scouting report on Bey and discussed the possibilities of the Knicks acquiring him.
-William Wesley is officially a part of the Knicks front office, but he's had influence on the franchise for some time now. According to Marc Berman of The New York Post, James Dolan has been taking advice from World Wide Wes for 15 years. Wesley pushed for the organization to get rid of former general manager Glen Grunwald and bring back Steve Mills. While that decision clearly didn't work out, there's been plenty of individuals around the league praising what Wesley will bring to New York. For more on Wesley and his relationship with Dolan, you can read Berman's article here.
-It's been a tough year so far for so many people, but our own Lauren Russell has one thing to help cheer you up: Mitchell Robinson playing basketball against little kids. The Knick posted a video on Instagram of him dribbling with two young kids trying to take the ball away from him, and you can watch it in Lauren's most recent Knicks social media check-in. There's more great content that Knicks' players are posting, like Reggie Bullock in a video for Pride Month and players like Bobby Portis and Damyean Dotson putting in work in the gym. You can view all those posts and more in Lauren's article.
