The New York Knicks find themselves in a pretty favorable position ahead of the NBA Draft Lottery thanks to their wretched 2014-15 season, which was one of the worst in franchise history. The team finished with the second-worst record in the league, even behind the lowly 76ers, who have been actively tanking for multiple seasons now.
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That horrible finish means that the Knicks will have the second-best odds of winning the draft lottery, which is about the only good thing to come out of a terrible season. At worst, New York will pick fifth in the draft, although they would certainly like to be at the top, where there are two potential franchise big men available.
According to ESPN, if the Knicks do land the first pick, they would favor Kentucky star Karl-Anthony Towns with it instead of Duke's Jahlil Okafor. Organizational sources reportedly said that they have Towns at the top of their board, followed by Okafor. Emmanuel Mudiay is third, and D'Angelo Russell is fourth.
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According to Ian Begley:
"Phil Jackson has said he will likely keep the pick if it falls within the top four, but will consider dealing the pick if it falls to No. 5. Of course, Jackson could change his thinking between now and draft night. League sources with knowledge of the Knicks' thinking said last month that the team would be very open to trading the pick if it falls outside the top two.
Jackson has said he's looking for a strong defender in the draft, so it makes sense that the Knicks would rate Towns over Okafor. Towns is widely believed to be the stronger defender of the two at this stage of their careers, while Okafor is viewed by many talent evaluators as a stronger offensive player who is also more NBA-ready. But many scouts believe Towns can develop into a better all-around threat."
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