Jonny Flynn, Ty Lawson, Toney Douglas, Tywain McKee, Leo Lyons, and Dante Cunningham all visited the Knicks training facility for a workout this afternoon. Media weren't granted access to the workouts themselves as far as I can tell, but the prospects were made available after their auditions. As was expected, Lawson and Flynn raised the most interest by far. Here are some selections from those who attended:
Tommy Dee (reformatted a little for space purposes):
Seriously, someone tell me what’s the difference between Jonny Flynn and Ty Lawson? Lawson has short arms? Flynn is more firey? One is slightly faster, and one slightly taller. One played in the Big East, one played in the ACC? I’ll tell you this, and it was crystal clear today, both Flynn and Lawson know who they are and what they can do, and both really fit a need on this team.To think that Lawson is some 15 picks behind Flynn in some latest mocks is impossible to fathom. How is that possible?
Bottom line is both players are safe picks. Point guards always have a spot on a roster. Back up PGs who can move the ball and play defense are vital to a team’s overall success. They can earn up to 20-25 minutes a game, and not have a team miss a beat. But fans want GMs to knock it out of the park, which, as we all know often means taking a risk if you are drafting later than the player you want.
Jonny Flynn came in smiling, almost giddy to be wearing the colors of his favorite team.
"I grew up a die-hard Knicks fan, dating back to the Miami-New York series when they had people swinging from people’s legs and things like that," the Syracuse floor general said after his predraft workout with the Knicks Tuesday at the MSG Training Center. "It would mean a lot for me to stay home."
Across the room was Ty Lawson sitting in a chair with an obvious chip on his shoulder and mentioned, by name, ESPN mock draftologist Chad Ford, among others who are not ranking him higher among the point guards in this draft. Ford has Lawson going No. 24 (Portland).
"People say I’m injury prone and too short," Lawson said. "I mean, we’re just going to see what happens on draft day and after the draft. I’ll prove everybody wrong."
Unlike Stephen Curry, Ty Lawson hasn’t read "Seven Seconds or Less" the book that details the Phoenix Suns' success under Mike D’Antoni.
"I’ve heard about it," Lawson says with refreshing honesty.
Of course, Lawson, the North Carolina point guard, has something Curry doesn’t have: an NCAA Championship. And with the Knicks looking to change their losing culture, what better player to take with the eighth overall pick than Lawson, who along with Syracuse point guard Jonny Flynn, worked out for the Knicks yesterday?
"I think you saw me have big assist games where I get my teammates involved and also have games where I have big points," Flynn said. "I think I really balanced those two things well and I think I can bring that to an NBA franchise." The knock on Flynn is his size. Though he is listed at 6-feet, Flynn is probably closer to 5-11. Yet Flynn points to undersized guards like Nate Robinson of the Knicks and Aaron Brooks of the Houston Rockets as evidence that smaller players can get it done in the NBA. "You look at Aaron Brooks, he dominated the playoffs this year with his play," Flynn said. "There was nobody in the playoffs that could stay in front of him. With guys like Aaron Brooks and Nate Robinson and then you have Chris Paul, he's 6 foot. It's coming back to a league where smaller guards are doing well."
Tomorrow: Stephen Curry, Jrue Holiday, Dionte Christmas (could we somehow work out a Christmas-Holiday backcourt?) , B.J. Mullens, Rashaad Singleton, and Gerald Henderson.