After Duke’s win at Madison Square Garden, Zion Williamson spoke about his dreams to play for the New York Knicks.
Number 12 Texas Tech and the Number 2 Duke Blue Devils faced off on Thursday night at Madison Square Garden for one of the most important college basketball games in weeks. Duke was able to come out on top, 69-58, cementing their legacy as one of college basketball’s best.
After the game, Jeff Borzello of ESPN was able to sit down with the Blue Devils star, Zion Williamson, and ask him how it felt to play in professional basketball’s most storied arena.
Zion, the projected number one pick in the upcoming 2019 NBA draft, had this to say:
“This is the Garden. A lot of greats have come through here. My favorite great to come through here was probably Bernard King because my stepdad talked about him a lot how he just put the ball in the basket. … I had to go watch his highlights. He could really score the basketball. He was incredible how he did it.”
Most importantly, Zion hinted at the idea of playing at MSG all season long.
“Forty-one games at the Garden, I mean, it would probably be incredible”
This quote alone will surely send shivers down Knicks fans’ spines. Zion is one of the most NBA-ready prospects to come from the college circuit in years. Athletically speaking, he’s probably the most gifted athlete since LeBron James, moving incredibly well for his immense size (6-foot-7, 284 pounds).
With a vertical leap that exceeds 40 inches, Zion is putting up some monster numbers this college season: 19.8 points on 65.2 percent shooting, 9.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.9 blocks and 2.1 steals.
Zion would be the perfect antidote to the Knicks’ struggles. The Knicks are 9-24; one of the worst records in the NBA. At the moment, NBAdraft.net has them slotted at the fifth slot in the 2019 draft. New York is projected to select Williamson’s teammate, Cameron Reddish, with this pick.
However, the Knicks’ upcoming schedule is a Murderer’s Row. Take a look at their next 10 games in comparison with the other four teams that are in the running for the number one pick:
| NEW YORK KNICKS (9-24) | Atlanta Hawks (7-23) | Cleveland Cavaliers (8-24) | Chicago Bulls (7-25) | Phoenix Suns (8-24) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| vs. Atlanta | @ New York | @ Toronto | vs. Orlando | vs. Los Angeles Clippers |
| vs. Milwaukee | @ Detroit | vs. Chicago | @ Cleveland | vs. Charlotte Hornets |
| @ Milwaukee | vs. Indiana | @ Memphis | vs. Minnesota | vs. Sacramento Kings |
| @ Utah | @ Minnesota | @ Miami | @ Washington | @ Dallas Mavericks |
| @ Denver | vs. Cleveland | @ Atlanta | @ Toronto | vs. Denver |
| @ Los Angeles Lakers | @ Indiana | vs. Miami | vs. Orlando | @ Indiana |
| @ Portland | @ Washington | vs. Utah | vs. Indiana | @ Toronto |
| @ Golden State | @ Milwaukee | vs. New Orleans | vs. Brooklyn | @ Charlotte |
| vs. Indiana | vs. Miami | vs. Indiana | @ Portland | @ Minnesota |
| vs. Philadelphia | @ Toronto | vs. New Orleans | @ Golden State | vs. Minnesota |
New York’s schedule is hands down the toughest of the bunch. One can only assume that after this set of games, the New York Knicks will fall down the standings a bit. This would, in turn, give them a better shot at selecting first in the recently rejiggered NBA draft odds.
