So as site historian, Chip, would you mind listing the young guys the Knicks have selected in the last 20 years that they let go, and then saw develop into stars and superstars on other teams.
Because I'd really like to see that list.
Maybe that might make more sense of the constant pipe dream you relate that RJ will be a star and Grimes, yeah, he's gonna be great, and Obi, o boy he'll be a star, and don't sleep on Quickley, he's gonna make that jump and.....and.....and....
It's pretty exhausting.
Men that prove themselves in the highest strata of the NBA remain as rare as hen's teeth. That's why we make the fucking deal.
Disagree. That's why you DON'T MAKE THE DEAL. When you draft well, you don't, to may way of thinking, offload it for shiny objects. YOU DEVELOP IT. And when the fruit is ripe, THEN do you contemplate exchanging it: value for value.
You have to be patient. I view the Mitchell Deal as a shakedown. Compromising our future and our present. Unless Ainge gets a grip, FUCK HIM.
If you go back and look at Knicks DRAFT BOARDS for the past 30 Years, you will notice many a year when we had NO #1 picks, and sometimes, no #2 picks. Sometimes weak drafts. Sometimes weak selections. And when we did score talent, we dumped it, never you mind players we lost out on from traded #1 picks [Scottie Pippen, Joakim Noah, LaMarcus Aldridge, Gordon Hayward, Jaamal Murray]
Let's see, what pups have we let go. Off the top of my head.
Rod Strickland
John Wallace
Nene Hillario
Trevor Ariza
Channing Frye
David Lee
Nate Rolbinson
Iman Shumpert
Danillo Gallinari
Wilson Chandler
Timothy Mozgov
Timmy Hardaway
Kristaps Porzingis
Our drafts since 1992
1992: Hubert Davis [#20]
1993: [No Picks]
1994: Monty Williams [#24], Charlie Ward [#26]
1995: [No Picks]
1996: John Wallace [#18], Walter McCarty [#19], Donate Jones [#21]
1997: John Thomas [#25]
1998: DeMarco Johnson [#38], Sean Marls [#44]
1999: Fredceric Weis [#15], J.R. Koch [#46]
2000: Donnell Harvey [#22]
2001: Michael Wright [#39], Eric Chenowith [#43]
2002: Nene Hillario [#7], Milos Vujanic [#36]
2003: Mike Sweetney [#9] Marceij Lampe [#30], Slvako Vranes [#39]
2004: Trevor Ariza [#43]
2005: Channing Frye [#8], David Lee [#30], Dijon Thompson [#54]
2006: Renaldo Balkman [#20], Mardy Collins [#29]
2007: Wilson Chandler [#23]
2008: Danillo Gallinari [#6]
2009: Jordan Hill [#8]
2010: Andy Rautins [#38], Landry Fields [#39]
2011: Iman Shumpert [#17]
2012: Kostas Papanikolaou [#48]
2013: Timmy Hardaway [#24]
2014: Cleanthony Early [#34], Thanasis Antetokounmpo [#51]
2015: Kristaps Porzingis [#4]
2016: [No Picks]
2017: Frank Ntilikina [#8], Damyeon Dotson [#44]
2018: Kevin Knox [#9], Mitchell Robinson [#36]
2019: R.J. Barrett [#3],
Kyle Guy [#55], Ignas Brazdeikis [#47]
2020: Obi Toppin [#8],
Leandro Balmaro [#23], Immanuel Quickley [#25]
2021:
Kai Jones [#19],
Keon Johnson [#21], Quentin Grimes [#25],
Jeremiah Robinson-Earl [#32], Rokas Jokubaitis [#34], Miles McBride [#36], Jericho Sims [#58]
2022:
Ousmane Dieng [#11], Trevor Keels [#42]
Not sure what we can glean from this list: Ntilikina was a bust, Robinson was a keeper, Knox and a 2021 #1 [via Charlotte] got us Cam Reddish [#10, 2019]
But from the Leon Rose Drafts & Trades: Toppin, Quickley, Grimes, Jokubaitis, McBride, Sims, Reddish, Keels.
I understand that you feel as though I am wildly overestimating the upside of these puppies.
I preach patience.
WHY?
Let's look at competitive Knicks Teams Of The Late 1960s & 1970s, when there were many more rounds, and a lot fewer teams, and how they developed youth, and didn't overpay in trades.
1963: Art Heyman [#2]
1964: Jim Barnes [#3], Willis Reed [#10], Howard Komives [#15], Emmette Bryant [#55]
1965: Bill Bradley [#2], Dave Stallworth [#5], Dick Van Arsdale [#13],
1966: Cazzie Russell [#1]
1967: Walt Frazier [#5], Phil Jackson [#17], Mike Riordan [#128]
1968: Bill Hosket [#10], Donnie May [#30]
Let's see.
Van Arsdale was an excellent player for the Knicks but they lost him in the expansion draft to the Phoenix Suns, along with Emmette Bryant.
The Knicks traded Johnny Green, Johnny Egan, Jim Barnes, and cash in 1965 for Walt Bellamy, also trading Bob Boozer to the Lakers for Dick Barnett. Howard Komives was, I believe the nation's leading scorer when the Knicks drafted him. They packaged Komives and Bellamy [a Hall Of Famer center] for Dave DeBusherre. This opened up the PG slot for Walt Frazier and allowed them to slot Dave at PF, and slide Willis over from PF to Center, while concluding Bill Bradley was not a guard but a SF, while Cazzie and Stallworth and Riordan were wings off the bench, and Jackson backed up the center and PF.
Eventually, Stallworth and Riordan were packaged for Earl Monroe. And when Willis went down, Cazzie was traded for Jerry Lucas.
So the Knicks nurtured their puppies from 1964-1968, lost two to the expansion draft, and werre prudent in how they packaged them in trades.
Emmette Bryant Dick Van Arsdale Howard Komives Willis Reed
Bill Bradley
Walt Frazier
Phil Jackson Dave Stallworth
Mike Riordan
Cazzie RussellSo, of our puppies, we lost Bryant and Van Arsdale to the expansion draft.
We converted Komives into Dave D
We converted Stallworth and Riordan to Monroe
We converted Cazzie To Lucas
Reed, Bradley, Frazier and Jackson were lifers.