New York Knicks: Imagining Zion Williamson’s fit with the team
Zion Williamson is without a doubt the top prospect in the upcoming NBA Draft. But how would he fit with this New York Knicks team?
With March Madness currently overshadowing the NBA, almost everyone seems to be talking about Zion Williamson and Duke once again. Teams like the New York Knicks appear to have their hands full at the moment as they try to ensure they draft the perfect possible candidate to elevate them for next season.
The Knicks currently possess the worst record in the NBA. They had been battling with the Phoenix Suns throughout the better part of the season, though it seems like the Suns have suddenly found out how to play basketball, winning 6 out of their last 13 games as opposed to New York’s total of 2 games won during the same 13-game span.
As a result, the Knicks are currently on pace to have the highest odds at obtaining the No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming draft, which would most likely conclude with them selecting Zion Williamson, a generational talent that has been on the spotlight since his early high school days.
The thing is, it is really hard to envision Zion’s fit with the Knicks when we are dealing with a roster set to change. The Knicks are set to be big players in the upcoming free agency period, as they have the cap space to bring two max players to The Big Apple.
As a result, there is no blueprint for next year’s starting lineup, ultimately making it really hard to picture Zion fitting in with X-marked players. What we can do though, is talk about the very scant selection of players that will remain members of the New York Knicks after the summer.
Starting with the go-to young guy after the Kristaps Porzingis trade, Dennis Smith Jr. and Zion Williamson could prove to be a deadly duo and a constant headache for the opposing defense. They are both extremely athletic players that focus more on attacking the rim at all costs.
A pick-and-roll between these two young players would be no easy thing to stop. The defense would have to deal with 2 of the fastest players in the world that could explode and dunk the basketball when given just an inch of space.
Defensively, Zion pairs up perfectly with Mitchell Robinson, a player that rarely gets awarded with enough credit. Robinson is the league’s second-best shot blocker, averaging 2.4 blocks in just 19.1 minutes of playing time!
Zion’s athleticism helps him make insane defensive plays and his NBA-ready body pretty much ensures scouts that this defensive versatility is set to transition smoothly into the NBA level.
I mean, is there a way to deal with this?
And this at the same time?
https://twitter.com/NBATV/status/1109264846854352896
Defensively, these two could be a modern-day duo similar to Rasheed Wallace/Ben Wallace, a duo that won a championship right away.
Last but not least, Kevin Knox is a player that might not be too over the moon with Zion’s potential arrival in New York. Knox did have his moments throughout his rookie campaign, but his lack of impress might force the organization to bench him sooner rather than later.
Zion would certainly limit Kevin’s time on the court, making it even more difficult for him to blossom into an NBA star, the one we saw during those spectacular Summer League games.
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Even though it is most likely that Zion joins the squad in June, the lottery has ruined many team’s chances at obtaining the first pick. After all those years of rebuilding, let’s see if the Knicks will be rewarded with that holy #1 pick, the first since Patrick Ewing.