New York Knicks: Players To Watch In Summer League
By Kaveh Jam
On Monday, the New York Knicks announced their roster for the 2015 NBA Summer League. New York will once again compete in the annual summer event held at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.
The next era of Knicks basketball is set to kick off Saturday in a matchup with the San Antonio Spurs. The roster, which is highlighted by first-round picks Kristaps Porzingis and Jerian Grant, will be the first look at the revamped New York team under president Phil Jackson.
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The 7-foot Porzingis was initially thought to be questionable to make the roster due to tightness in his hips experienced during pre-draft workouts. The Knicks’ selection with the No. 4 pick in the draft was the subject of heavy scrutiny, stemming predominantly from mystery and ambiguity. The Latvian, who spent last season at Baloncesto Sevilla in Spain, is fairly unknown to New Yorkers.
If Porzingis is indeed able to go, it will give fans another very premature look into how his skill set could fit into the Knicks rebuilding plan. He should see plenty of opportunities to display a perimeter shot that had many scouts enamored with his pre-draft workouts. But at a slight 209-pounds, Porzingis has a ways to go to allow his body to endure the rigors of NBA basketball.
Grant will be the other Knick to watch closely. As the son of former NBA-forward Harvey Grant, the younger Grant is expected to fill New York’s sorely lacking playmaking needs at point guard. The position has been particularly dry and void over the past several seasons.
His ability to create and distribute should thrive in summer league where the floor is usually spread and shooters picket around the three-point stripe even on fast breaks.
Guards Langston Galloway and Ricky Ledo are also on the roster. Galloway will look to continue building off of a 2015 NBA All-Rookie selection. He has intriguing potential after going undrafted in 2014 and is a favorite of coach Derek Fisher.
The team will also get a look at the continued improvement of 2014 draft picks in Cleanthony Early and draft-and-stash selection Thanasis Antetokounmpo. A good showing during the NCAA tournament made the 6-foot-8 Wichita State forward somewhat of a surprise to be available to the Knicks at No. 34. But his rookie transition to the professional ranks was up and down last season.
There is also some intrigue regarding Antetokounmpo’s development. The Knicks will benefit greatly from his raw skill set, especially if he’s made a marked improvement in his outside shooting and defense. Reports from his tenure at the Knicks’ D-League affiliate in Westchester indicate he’s rounded into a high-energy prospect.
Forwards Travis Wear and Louis Labeyrie (another 2014 stash selection) from France fill out a New York roster that will likely create a lot of anticipated attraction to those anxious to see the first draft of Jackson’s Knicks rebuild.
The team will play a Summer League schedule that includes matchups with second and third overall picks D’Angelo Russell and Jahlil Okafor, respectively.
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