The New York Knicks, desperate for talent, are without a pick in this year's NBA Draft. Though last year's first-round selection Kristaps Porzingis lived up to the hype, he won't be enough to help turn around the fates of this franchise. So as Carmelo Anthony enters the latter part of his prime, team president Phil Jackson knows he needs to add talent every offseason.
That is why the Knicks are planning to acquire a pick. According to a recent report, New York is hoping to somehow score a late first-round selection, though a second-round pick is much more likely.
The club has a workout scheduled with Indiana guard Yogi Ferrell, and the Knicks have also interviewed Kansas guard Wayne Selden at the NBA draft combine. He, along with a handful of others, are all thought to be on Jackson's radar. The triangle offense isn't going to initiate itself, after all.
Selden, at 6-6, is the type of big guard Jackson has coveted in the past (do the names Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant ring a bell?). Ferrell, 6-0, has reportedly looked great in workouts and was the only point guard last season to average 17 points per game, 5.5 assists and shoot at least 40 percent from deep. Selden averaged 13 points, 2.3 assists and shot 39 percent from deep last year.
St. Bonaventure guard Marcus Posley, Seton Hall's Isaiah Whitehead, Syracuse's Malachi Richardson and Kansas' Cheik Diallo are also of interest to the Knicks, according to the report.
During the 2015-16 season, the Knicks started Jose Calderon at point guard and Arron Afflalo at shooting guard. Calderon, 34, may not have much left in the tank, and Afflalo is expected to decline his player option for 2016-17 and enter unrestricted free agency, which opens on July 1.
The Knicks hired Jeff Hornacek as their new head coach last week. He emphasized the point guard position during his two and a half seasons with the Phoenix Suns.
