New York Knicks Land Cleanthony Early and Thanasis Antetounmpo, Team Has High Hopes for Both Players
The second round of the 2014 NBA Draft landed the New York Knicks with Cleanthony Early and Thanasis Antetokounmpo and the team has high hopes for the two players, especially with Antetokounmpo. While Early has gotten most of the attention, the Knicks have been excited about Antetokounmpo.
The latter had been in Greece over the summer when he got a call from the Knicks president. While the team didn't have any open roster spots, they had been hoping that the second-round pick would agree to join the team. At the same time however, he had also gotten an offer from a European team with a reported $500,000.
Antetokounmpo had chosen to be with the Knicks.
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"That was major. It's my dream to be here with the Knicks," he says. "The Knicks gave me the opportunity to be here. They drafted me and I think they trust me."
The Knicks sees the winger as a long-term investment and hopes that he will become a player who can defend multiple positions and knock down shots at the perimeter.
"We want to see him be able to be comfortable on the perimeter with guard skills. He shot the ball better toward the end of the year in the D-League, so we think he can improve there as well," says Knicks assistant Allan Houston.
"His impact on the game is high. He finds a way to leave an imprint," he adds.
Antetokounmpo's coach Kevin Whitted is also impressed with his skills.
"We want to build him from the ground up. We want to focus first on establishing great footwork with him and just building everything up from really the feet all th eway up," he says.
"If we can do that, I think Thanasis can have a long career," he adds.
