A lot of the talk around the New York Knicks' summer league has been about 7-foot-3 Kristaps Porzingis, and for good reason- because he was the fourth overall pick in the most recent draft. Porzingis has been pretty good so far in the summer league but the guy that is making the most noise for the Knicks summer league team is Maurice Ndour, and he reportedly has a realistic shot of making the team, according to the New York Post.
The Knicks summer league roster consists of five draft picks, including two first round picks Porzingis and Jerian Grant, but somehow Ndour, who went undrafted, is making the best impression. In summer league play, Ndour has averaged 13.4 points per game while shooting 56 percent from the field.
Ndour is a 6-foot-9 energetic player that has a non-stop motor, which has helped him get to this point. After two years of playing basketball at Monroe Community College in Westchester, he moved on to Ohio University where he had a great two years. In his two years, he averaged 14.8 points and 7.6 rebounds per game while shooting 50 percent from the field. He has shown during the summer league that he has a knock down mid-range jump shot, but that shouldn't be a surprise because he shot 44 percent from three point range in his final year at Ohio University.
Ndour has endured a lot to get where he is now. After being born in Senegal, he then moved to Japan to play high school basketball and currently speaks five different languages, so he is the kind of player that is easy to root for.
The Knicks currently have 13 players under contract for next season, which means they have two open roster spots. The Knicks have reportedly said, though, that they would consider bringing more than 15 guys to training camp with contracts. Head coach Derek Fisher has been singing Ndour's praises and thinks he's a lock to make a team, whether it is with the Knicks or someone else.
"I don't know any more he can do, he's doing everything that's in his control to be a guy whether our team - hopefully - or 29 other teams for sure will give him a look where he probably could play at this level and be pretty good at it,'' said Fisher.
Ndour's agent has reportedly been receiving a lot of offers from Europe and some NBA teams now that he is performing so well against NBA level competition. It seems as though Ndour will be getting a contract out of this in some form or fashion, whether it be with the Knicks or possibly in Europe.
