Blazers News: Portland re-signing failed lottery pick
In a bit of non-Damian Lillard news, the Trail Blazers have re-signed one of their own free agents, deciding to take another flier on a former top-10 pick who’s failed to live up to expectations.
Free agent forward Kevin Knox is signing a one-year deal to return to the Portland Trail Blazers, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. Knox, the No. 9 pick in the 2018 Draft, averaged 8.9 points and 17.1 minutes in 21 games for Portland last season.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 9, 2023
Portland Trail Blazers re-sign forward Kevin Knox II
Apparently, the former top-10 pick, who has yet to show any real, productive NBA skill, is getting another shot with the Blazers.
Knox was the ninth overall pick by the New York Knicks in the 2018 draft out of the University of Kentucky. As an athletic 6-foot-7 wing with a 6-11 wingspan who showed potential as a scorer during his lone season in Lexington, hopes were high for Knox in NYC.
He averaged almost 30 minutes per game as a rookie, but his awful efficiency – 37 percent shooting, 34 percent from three – relegated him to a bench role the next season, and things never got any better.
Knox has career averages of 7.5 points and 2.4 rebounds and still hasn’t found any kind of shooting stroke.
The Blazers brought him in at the trade deadline last season and he played in 21 games with averages of 8.5 points and 3.3 rebounds. He shot an underwhelming 31.4 percent from three on more than three attempts a night.
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Knox now gets another chance to show he belongs in the NBA on a rebuilding team in Portland.