New York has a history of celebrating basketball heroes who were second-round draft picks. Notable examples include Jalen Brunson, who recently paraded through Manhattan with the Larry O’Brien Trophy, and Willis Reed, whose legendary limping appearance in the 1970 NBA Finals propelled the Knicks to their first championship.
On Wednesday night in Brooklyn, as the NBA draft resumed with the Knicks holding the No. 31 pick, teams had aspirations of finding a vital player for their title quests. The Knicks selected Ohio State guard Bruce Thornton, but his rights were quickly traded to Houston before NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum announced the selection. Thornton received a Knicks hat initially, but by the time he reached his interviews, he wore a Rockets hat, expressing his excitement about joining the NBA, whether in Texas or with the champions. “Somebody said I got the wrong hat. I’m like, ‘What do you mean?’” Thornton remarked. “Then I heard it’s the Houston Rockets. I’m like, no state tax, so that’s even better.”
The first round, which began with Washington picking AJ Dybantsa, concluded late Tuesday night. The draft, a mix of trades and selections, saw teams like the Knicks maneuvering out of the first round altogether. This tactical movement prompted the decision to extend the draft into two nights, allowing more time for player evaluation. For players like Duke’s Isaiah Evans, the draft process can be challenging; he was in the green room at Barclays Center but wasn’t picked Tuesday. Evans didn’t return Wednesday but was eventually chosen with the No. 33 pick, now held by Minnesota after a trade.
Players not anticipating early selections or those understanding the value of patience, such as Meleek Thomas from Arkansas, find solace in lessons from their coaches. “The most important lesson I learned from Coach Cal this year was: Your time is coming. Don’t worry about when. Don’t worry about how,” said Thomas, who was picked by Sacramento and later traded to Cleveland.
In an earlier era of the NBA, Willis Reed was the No. 8 pick in the 1964 draft, technically the first pick of the second round under a different format. His leadership brought the Knicks championships in 1970 and 1973, earning him NBA Finals MVP honors. Jalen Brunson, picked No. 33 in the 2018 draft by the Dallas Mavericks, became a key signing for the Knicks as a free agent in 2022, contributing to the franchise’s recent success, including a series victory over San Antonio, where Brunson received the series MVP.
German guard Jack Kayil, whose rights the Knicks acquired with the No. 39 pick, expressed eagerness to learn from Brunson. “We play kind of in a similar position,” Kayil noted. “We are also in kind of the same position of the draft. He was also second round. So I think I can learn a lot of stuff, how he started getting into the NBA, into the league, getting in touch with that.” The Knicks also acquired rights to Tyler Nickel, Vanderbilt’s No. 47 pick, through their draft maneuvers.
Other notable second-round selections on Wednesday included Richie Saunders, BYU teammate of Dybantsa, chosen No. 32 by Memphis; Braden Smith from Purdue, NCAA’s career assists leader, picked No. 38 by Indiana; Kentucky’s Otega Oweh, selected No. 41 by Oklahoma City; and Emanuel Sharp from Houston at No. 45 by Sacramento.