Knicks: Jerian Grant Should Be Penciled in as Starter

Knicks: Jerian Grant Should Be Penciled in as Starter by Maxwell Ogden

Phil Jackson, Steve Mills and Clarence Gaines Jr. have developed a vision for the New York Knicks. While temptation and intrigue wait around every corner, that trio has remained true to form throughout their brief tenure.

Leading up to the 2015 NBA Draft, their faith in the vision never wavered—not even in the face of multiple trade offers.

According to Ian Begley of ESPN New York, the Boston Celtics, Orlando Magic and Phoenix Suns all attempted to trade up for the No. 4 overall selection.

Members of the New York Knicks’ front office were involved in discussions with Orlando, Phoenix and Boston in the hours leading up to the draft on Thursday, league sources with knowledge of the conversations say. Sources say that the Celtics were discussing a package that included multiple picks and big man Jared Sullinger with New York and that Phoenix talked to members of the organization about a trade involving Eric Bledsoe in the hours leading up to the draft.

As history shows, the Knicks decided to utilize the No. 4 pick to draft Latvian big man Kristaps Porzingis.

The Celtics offering multiple picks and Jared Sullinger was likely intriguing. The determining factor in turning the deal down was likely the fact that Boston’s first first-round draft pick wasn’t until No. 16 overall.

Even with the acquisition of Sullinger, a promising offensive threat, and multiple draft picks, dropping from No. 4 to No. 16 would’ve been a tough pill to swallow.

Phoenix was slotted at No. 13 overall, which would’ve put the Knicks in line for players such as Devin Booker, Sam Dekker, Jerian Grant, Kelly Oubre Jr. and Cameron Payne, whom New York reportedly coveted.

The Knicks ended up with Grant, anyways, so in one way, it all worked out in the end.

The intriguing part of that trade would’ve been landing rising star Eric Bledsoe. Bledsoe, Phoenix’s starint point guard, is already one of the premier defenders at his position and continues to improve offensively.

Bledsoe finished the 2014-15 season with averages of 17.0 points, 6.1 assists, 5.2 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 1.1 3-point field goals made per game. He also played in 81 games, thus silencing some of his health critics.

New York, again, stood its ground.

Whether or not these moves were right or wrong, they were true to the form New York’s front office has shown. They aren’t rushing into decisions and they valued the life out of a Top 5 pick.

In due time, we’ll see if these were the right decisions to make.