A playmaker guard who can shoot from the perimeter, Nico Mannion of Arizona could be a great fit for the Knicks with 27th pick.
The 19-year-old from Siena, Italy was one of the top high school recruits in the country before committing to Arizona, where he had a strong freshman season last year. Having averaged 14.0 points and 5.3 assists per game, he was named to the All-Pac-12 second team and All-Freshman team before bidding for the draft.
Whether Mannion falls on pick 27 is up for debate. Some early mock drafts had him projected up as a selection midway through the first round, but others got him back within range of the Knicks to pick it up.
Looking for an overhead guard who can both score and create for others, the Knicks could use their eighth overall pick to help the frontcourt, finding their point guard with Mannion.
The Italian guard needs to prove he can be more consistent with his shot after making only 39.2% of his field goals in Arizona, including an insignificant 32.7% from center. But if the Knicks found a way to enlist him and use their new development staff to stabilize his shot, they’d have the real deal.