With the Knicks having a historically horrible season, many fans are choosing to look at their team's struggles in a positive light, as it gives them a better chance of landing Duke sensation Zion Williamson if they land the first overall pick in the upcoming draft. However, Knicks rookie Kevin Knox voiced his displeasure with the fans who are hoping the Knicks keep losing just to secure a lottery pick.
"Yeah, a lot of fans, they always say some dumb stuff," Knox told the media during the team's shootaround ahead of Monday's game against the Cavaliers, according to the New York Post. "You see it all the time with the tanking and want us to lose, stuff like that. It’s kind of stupid. The,y’re not really true New Yorkers. Real Knicks fans know that we’re trying to just take this year to just develop us young guys and then next year hopefully make a push."
This year's struggles are something new for the 19-year-old Knox, who up until now had never lost more than five games in a row over the course of his young career. The former Kentucky standout prides himself on winning and insists that the Knicks aren't throwing the season for Zion.
"Every night we’re just going to go out and just play hard. We’re going to compete at the highest level," Knox explained. "it’s really good for us young guys to go out there and play against some of those playoff teams and be able to be in games. We lose to the Raptors by five, it’s a playoff team. It’s good to see us — we’re getting better every single game."
Knox's determination to win was echoed by Knicks coach David Fizdale, who claimed he would never "cheat the game" by blowing a season for the draft.
Despite this, with the Knicks in danger of suffering a record-setting 17th consecutive loss, many believe that New York is merely positioning itself to draft a talented rookie and land a big free agent in the summertime. If this is the case, one of the teams the Knicks will be battling for the top draft pick is the Cleveland Cavaliers, which makes Monday's game pivotal for the future of both franchises.
