NBA Trade Rumors: Kevin Knox’s Future With Knicks ‘Up In The Air,’ According To Shams Charania
When he was selected as the No. 9 overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, Kevin Knox was viewed as a young player that could bring the New York Knicks back to title contention and end their years of title drought. Unfortunately, Knox has failed to live up to expectations and is currently considered a disappointment in New York. With the Knicks no longer expected to return when the 2019-20 season resumes, rumors are beginning to circulate that the team may consider parting ways with Knox in the 2020 NBA offseason.
According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, Knox’s future with the Knicks is “up in the air,” and there is a strong possibility that they could use him as a trade chip to improve their roster this fall.
“Kevin Knox, for whatever reason, has yet to gain traction within the Knicks, and his future could very well be up in the air going into next year,” Charania said, as quoted by Jeffrey Bellone of Fansided’s Daily Knicks. “It will be interesting to see if they do dangle him in trade talks and how far that does go.”
It wouldn’t really be a surprise if the Knicks decide to get rid of Knox in the 2020 offseason. After failing to impress in his rookie season, the 20-year-old small forward didn’t show any performance improvement in his second year with the Knicks. To make things worse, Knox showed a massive decline with his numbers in the 2019-20 season. In 65 games he played with the Knicks where he only started four times, Knox averaged 6.4 points and 2.8 rebounds while shooting 35.9 percent from the field and 32.7 percent from beyond the arc.
The man that demoted Knox to the bench, former head coach David Fizdale, may no longer be in New York, but that didn’t help improve the young forward’s situation with the Knicks. Though it still remains unknown who will be their next head coach, there are reportedly some people in the Knicks’ front office who still don’t see Knox as part of their long-term future. Earlier this month, Marc Berman of The New York Post reported that Knicks President of Basketball Operations Leon Rose isn’t sold on Knox.
Rose and his staff were supposed to use the remaining 16 games to evaluate Knox, but they lost that opportunity after they were left out from the 22 NBA teams that would return this season. As of now, the Knicks have to make a decision on Knox’s future using available data.
Parting ways with the Knicks could end up being beneficial for Knox. Being traded to an NBA team that could give him more playing time and a significant role on the offensive end of the floor could give Knox the chance to prove that he deserved to be selected as the No. 9 overall pick in the 2018 draft.
