The NY Knicks are hoping for the top pick in the draft lottery and names like Karl-Anthony Towns, Jahlil Okafor, D'Angelo Russell and Justise Winslow are potential options for the team and this comes as Phil Jackson is looking to sign free agents and players like LaMarcus Aldridge, Greg Monroe, Rajon Rondo, Goran Dragic, Reggie Jackson and Jimmy Butler could be targets.
The Knicks had their worst season in franchise history and they clinched the second worst record in the league and that actually could be a good thing when it comes to the lottery. It has been basically a decade since the worst team has won the draft lottery and that gives the Knicks better odds at winning based on the past results, even though the odds actually have the Timberwolves in the best position. According to Pro Basketball Talk, Towns has the inside edge over Okafor as the number one pick coming into the summer.
Okafor was considered by many to be the presumptive number one pick coming into the season and while he still could be the pick, Towns passed by him in the eyes of many scouts. Towns had a better NCAA tournament than Okafor, although Okafor is the one who won the championship with Duke. Towns and Okafor have both been scouted by Jackson and he said to the media that he is impressed with both players. Jackson has also reportedly scouted Russell and has watched him play at Ohio State.
According to ESPN New York, Jackson said that the Knicks would "consider" trading their lottery pick depending on where they end up in the draft order. The team likely will keep the pick if they are in the top three and there is a chance they could stay if they get into the top four. Obviously getting a top two pick would allow the Knicks to get ether Okafor or Towns, while going into the top three puts Russell and Winslow in play as well.
The Knicks had a terrible season, but they are getting Carmelo Anthony back (hopefully) healthy and they also found some young talent in Langston Galloway and Lance Thomas. The team also has Tim Hardaway Jr. and Shane Larkin and they could use that youth to help build a good roster around Carmelo. Jackson is expecting to have over $30 million in cap space this offseason and that means that the team could sign multiple big name free agents.
The Knicks reportedly will go hard after Greg Monroe and the team also could chase LaMarcus Aldridge, according to Marc Stein at ESPN. Frank Isola at the Daily News has Monroe to the Knicks as 'about as close to a done deal as you can get' and that would be a huge move for Jackson and the team. Monroe is one of the top free agents on the market and he is hitting the market after a career season with 16.1 points and 10.5 rebounds per game.
Monroe has not dealt with serious injuries during his career and he could be a strong fit for the Knicks with Anthony. The team is hoping to get the chance to draft Towns or Okafor with the number one overall pick.
