NBA Draft: Grades for all 15 teams in the Eastern Conference

Eastern Conference NBA Draft Grades: New York Knicks

Picks: Trevor Keels, Guard, Duke (42)

The New York Knicks were a part of the draft’s first trade, initially taking Ousmane Dieng in one of the lottery’s most puzzling decisions. Then it came out that the Knicks were moving the pick to the Oklahoma City Thunder, and in return they got three first-round picks, a very solid return and the result of the Thunder having so many picks teams play hardball with them.

The Knicks were then back in the trade fray, stepping into a three-team trade with the Charlotte Hornets and Detroit Pistons to move Kemba Walker into some of Detroit’s cap space to work towards clearing room for a run at a player like Jalen Brunson. They sent a first and some seconds to the Hornets for Duren and then sent him and Kemba to the Pistons for another first.

The New York Knicks finally made a pick at 42, adding Trevor Keels out of Duke. He is a bowling ball of a player who is unafraid to mix it up inside, but he lacked efficiency outside of a few big games. He has great defensive tools and seems like the right kind of kid to put in the work to improve, but he’s not a sure thing nor a win-now player.

Grade: B+