NBA executive on Kevin Knox: 'He's f---ing really good'
Drafting Kentucky freshman Kevin Knox with the No. 9 overall pick in last month’s NBA draft, the New York Knicks are banking on the 6-foot-9 forward to help revive the team and get them back into playoff contention next season.
While he — like Knicks star Kristaps Porzingis — was booed by fans on draft night, he seems to have already impressed at least one NBA executive just days into the Las Vegas Summer League.
“He’s f—ing really good,” an anonymous NBA executive told The Athletic’s Mike Vorkunov on Saturday. “A real stud.”
Knox dropped 22 points and grabbed eight rebounds in the Knicks’ 91-89 win over the Atlanta Hawks at the Thomas and Mack Center on Saturday afternoon. His shooting performance wasn’t great by any means — Knox went 8-of-20 from the field and 1-of-7 from behind the arc — but the 18-year-old did throw down a pair of highlight worthy dunks.
Knox coast-to-coast the Knicks are back pic.twitter.com/Fyo3G3fZHF
— Rob Perez (@World_Wide_Wob) July 7, 2018
It’s the Kevin Knox show in Las Vegas right now pic.twitter.com/xIlgsyJLOR
— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) July 7, 2018
Knox averaged 15.6 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game for Kentucky last season, leading the Wildcats to a 26-11 record and a Sweet 16 appearance.
“He’s very comfortable with himself, very comfortable with his game,” Knicks coach David Fizdale told The Athletic. “He knows his game. He really understands at a young age how to get to spots and find his shot. We put him in a lot of different situations. He’s rolling in pick-and-rolls, he’s handling in pick-and-rolls. So we’re going to mix it up with him and try to utilize his skill set.”
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