New York Knicks youngster Kevin Knox describes the start of his NBA career as “tough.” He’s yet to find solid footing on the hardwood.
A New York Knicks rookie amazed the world for the second such instance in three seasons of NBA Summer League play in 2018. The kid’s name was Kevin Knox, first-round selection out of Kentucky who did his best Kristaps Porzingis impersonation in Vegas.
Surprisingly, it hasn’t translated into regular-season success, and the kid recently spoke extremely candidly about the start of his professional basketball career, via Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News.
“It’s been tough,” Knox admitted after his team’s 117-109 win over the Celtics. “The in and out (of the lineup) and not playing as well as I’d like to. But like I said, I got to be strong mentally and make sure I got to keep playing hard, keep doing the dirty work, work on defense and get better at that. But it’s been tough.”
“They just tell me to take deep breaths, go out there and don’t focus on anything else, just focus on playing hard, competing, getting loose balls, 50-50 balls, and show that you’re out there competing and working hard,” Knox said (Daily News). “Getting those loose balls. If you see a ball on the ground, dive on the ground and make sure you come up with it and show your teammates that they should respect you and see that you’re working hard out there. That’s what they tell me.”
Knox, 19, is currently averaging 8.5 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 0.5 blocks per contest in just 19.3 minutes per night. On Wednesday night, he put forth 11 points with nine rebounds off the bench in the surprising victory.
Head coach David Fizdale can’t speak glowingly enough about his young stud.
“I was proud of him,” Fizdale said, per the Daily News. “He hadn’t been playing great. And to come up here in Boston, against one of the best teams in the East, I thought he really answered the bell.”
Knox will represent a key aspect to the rest of the 2018-19 season. With Kristaps Porzingis eventually making his return, it’s imperative the club finds another “possible” star piece to match with the big man.
It may just be enough in attracting a second superstar via the NBA Free Agency period come summertime.
Kevin Knox and the New York Knicks get right back at it post-Thanksgiving with a home date against the New Orleans Pelicans at Madison Square Garden on Friday night. First-tip comes your way at 7:30 p.m. ET to kick off that lovable night known as Friday Night Knicks.