New York Knicks: Evaluating Kevin Knox’s rookie season

Kevin Knox’s rookie season with the New York Knicks was full of ups and downs as he learned to adjust to playing NBA basketball.

The 2018-19 NBA season certainly was not one to remember for the New York Knicks and their fans. New York finished with a league-worst 17 wins during a season that was tumultuous and drama-filled, words that have seemingly become synonymous with the organization in recent years.

With that being said, one of the few bright spots for the blue and orange this past season was the play of their 19-year-old rookie Kevin Knox. Despite having an up-and-down year overall and showing some weaknesses along the way, Knox was able to display flashes of greatness that should have individuals excited about the young man’s potential.

Kevin Knox was able to put up very respectable numbers during his first NBA season. In 75 appearances and 57 starts, Knox averaged 12.8 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 28.8 minutes per game. These numbers bear a striking resemblance to those of Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum when he was a rookie last year, as he averaged 13.9 points and 5.0 rebounds in 30.5 minutes per game.

However, when looking closely, it becomes clear that Knox did not have as good of a rookie year as Tatum due to his efficiency, which is arguably one of his biggest weaknesses. The Kentucky product struggled to find his rhythm consistently against NBA defenses, something which is understandable for a player of his age. However, Knox must improve upon his shooting percentage of just 37 percent in order to become a reliable scorer in this league, and fans should be confident that he will.

Knox’s skill-set has him set up for success in today’s NBA. Obviously the 3-point shot is crucial to being successful in this league and fortunately for the Knicks, he has already displayed proficiency in this area of his game. He was clearly comfortable shooting the ball from deep and he was able to make them somewhat consistently.

Knox buried 34.3 percent of his 4.9 attempts from beyond the arc per game, a solid mark for a teenager with so much room for growth. Also, despite the fact that Knox has struggled on the defensive side of the ball, he has the physical tools to develop into a versatile defender one day.

He stands at a lanky 6’9” with a 6’11” wingspan, making Knox a tall small forward with the quickness of a guard. The primary reason as to why he was such a subpar defender during his rookie season was due to poor defensive positioning.

On too many occasions, Knox would be caught ball-watching and simply be unaware of where to be on the defensive end. While concerning, most of Knox’s defensive lapses are fixable and more NBA experience will likely help to limit these mistakes.

Throughout the course of his rookie season, Kevin Knox had a handful of noteworthy performances against some of the better teams in the NBA. Two performances that stood out among the rest were against the Philadelphia 76ers on Jan. 13 and the Milwaukee Bucks on Dec. 1. Knox scored a career-high 31 points and grabbed seven boards against the Sixers. He was extremely aggressive throughout, and he did an excellent job at attacking the basket consistently in order to get easy buckets.

Thanks to Knox’s play, the Knicks were able to cut a 22-point Philadelphia lead in the second quarter to just three in the closing seconds. New York ended up losing, but regardless, it was extremely impressive to see Knox’s shot-making carry the Knicks back into the game.

During the game against the Bucks, Knox was able to put up 26 points and dish out four assists against the team that finished with the NBA’s best record. He was dialed in from range as he finished the game with five triples, all while being guarded by some of Milwaukee’s best perimeter defenders such as Sterling Brown and Tony Snell.

While some areas of his game deserve criticism, it is safe to say that Kevin Knox is a confident player. If he continues to stay confident and work on his game, he has what it takes to become a great NBA player.