With the Knicks slotted to pick 6th in this year’s draft, I was curious what kind of player the team might expect to get with that position. So I looked at the #6 picks in the last 10 drafts.
I Buoni (The Good): Chris Kaman, Martell Webster, Josh Childress, Brandon Roy, Shane Battier
Unfortunately there are no superstars in this group. Chris Kaman had a break out season this year, but it was “the best player on a bad team” syndrome. Roy and Webster are young pieces in Portland’s future, but neither have eye-popping stats. Battier has always been a solid defender, but hasn’t contributed enough on offense to make him more than an average starter. Josh Childress became Atlanta’s 6th man.
I Brutti (The Bad): Dajuan Wagner, DerMarr Johnson, Robert Traylor
Traylor looked good his first year, but ate his way out of the league. No one can say what DerMarr Johnson’s career might have been if not for that car accident. Despite the accident he managed to stick around in the league for a few seasons, but never lived up to his pre-injury potential. Dajuan Wagner has his picture in the dictionary next to the word “bust.”
I Giovanni (The Young): Yi Jianlian
A little too early to judge the foreigner, especially since he’s not yet old enough to order a Milwaukee’s Best.
It seems that the Knicks aren’t likely to get a great player here, but the odds are they can get a quality starter. There’s the possibility of All Star talent available as Richard Hamilton, Luol Deng, and Damon Stoudamire were recent #7 picks. The last time the Knicks picked 6th was 1982 when they grabbed shooting guard Trent Tucker.
i say we trade down or trade away the pick. but honestly, at this point, i’m just praying we get under the cap by ‘10 so we have at least a chance (doesn’t matter if it’s a good or bad one) to play in the free agent market.