Jay Bilas Offers Knicks Draft Strategy

ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas sees a plethora of options for the New York Knicks at this week's NBA Draft.

Jul 29, 2021; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Keon Johnson (Tennessee) walks off the stage after being selected as the number twenty-one overall pick by the New York Knicks in the first round of the 2021 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports / Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

The New York Knicks are finally going back to school.

New York has taken in most of the last two NBA Drafts as de facto spectators but they currently hold two picks in Wednesday's debut round at Barclays Center (8 p.m. ET, ESPN/ABC). Whether the Knicks wind up using those picks remains to be seen, but there have been plenty of theories and suggestions of both the amateur and professional variety when it comes to welcoming NBA virgins.

The Knicks' potential decision has apparently stumped even ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas, who broke down some of the Knicks potential arrivals in a Q&A with Steve Serby of the New York Post.

"At that point, who knows?' Bilas remarked. "Maybe you’ll have big guys available, whether it’s Yves Missi from Baylor or Kel’el Ware of Indiana, that’s a possibility. You could also have guys like Baylor Scheierman from Creighton or [Tyler] Kolek from Marquette. There are a bunch of guys that could very well be there."

Bilas believes that the Knicks' decision gets a little easier if they choose to let defense take center stage.

Mar 15, 2024; Washington, D.C., USA; North Carolina State Wolfpack forward Mohamed Diarra (23) shoots the ball as Virginia Cavaliers guard Ryan Dunn (13) defends in overtime at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports / Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

"An interesting prospect that isn’t an offensive player (is) Ryan Dunn of Virginia," Bilas noted. 'He may be the best overall defender in the draft, but he’s not there offensively. He’s just long and athletic and really impactful on the defensive end and can really run."

Officially, Ousmane Dieng is listed as the Knicks' most recent first-round choice but New York immediately dealt the 11th pick of the 2022 draft to Oklahoma City in a multi-pronged effort to build a budget for then-incoming free agent Jalen Brunson. Last year's first-round choice was send to Portland at the corresponding trade deadline as part of the deal that brought in Brunson's fellow Villanova alum Josh Hart. Portland used the 23rd overall pick on Iowa's Kris Murray.

This time around, the Knicks hold the 24th and 25th overall selections, gaining the latter from Dallas as the final yield from 2019's Kristaps Porzingis trade.

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