The New York Knicks have no draft picks in this month’s NBA Draft because of the Carmelo Anthony and Andrea Bargnani deals. But team president Phil Jackson is on the hunt to attain some.
Addressing the media on Friday, Jackson told reporters that he’s looking to add a second-round draft pick, specifically naming the Philadelphia 76ers and the Milwaukee Bucks as teams with an abundance of picks.
“We have a limited amount of funds that we can use,” Jackson said, via The Knicks Blog. “It’s been pro-rated now to every team. You know, teams do sell draft picks. We are going to approach teams and ask them if they’re willing to allow us to buy a draft pick if we feel like there’s a player we want to have at a position that comes up.
“Philadelphia has seven picks, Milwaukee has four. They can’t even put them on the roster. You can’t draft that many players and have them as part of your roster. So obviously something is going to go on in that situation. However, saying that, there are a lot of teams that don’t have draft picks besides us, so it could be a bidding war. We’re not going to run ourselves into the ground chasing this if it doesn’t work out.”
Philadelphia holds the No. 32, 39, 47, 52, and 54 picks in the second round, and only Nerlens Noel, Michael Carter-Williams, Thaddeus Young, Tony Wroten, and Arnett Moultrie are signed to guaranteed contracts for next season.
Of course, there is a chance the Sixers could deal Carter-Williams, the reigning NBA Rookie of the Year.
Then, the rest of the roster is on non-guaranteed multi-year deals, and according to Philly.com, the team is only expected to retain “a small portion of players.”
The NBA allows a maximum of 15 players on its regular-season roster.
In addition to the Knicks, the Brooklyn Nets, Portland Trail Blazers, New Orleans Pelicans, and the Golden State Warriors do not have draft picks. The Detroit Pistons, Washington Wizards, and Indiana Pacers are without first-round picks.
