Knicks mock draft round-up: 06/06/17

See that clock there? That’s the countdown clock until the Knicks’ SALVATION.

No, not salivation, although that may be how some of us are spending our time on DraftExpress these days.

We’re getting so close to the Draft! And because of that, coverage should be ramping up soon. Thankfully, these NBA Finals seem to wrapping up fairly quickly, so we should have even more Draft coverage to eat up by this time next week.

(Lowkey I hope I just jinxed it, and the Cavs come back and beat the Warriors in seven games.)

But yeah, with all the NBA guys busy with the Finals, this isn’t exactly the most robust round-up this week. C’est la vie.

So let’s see what’s up in mock draft land today:

New entries:

The Ringer: The Knicks take Malik Monk, freshman G, Kentucky. Sooo I’m a dummy and totally forgot about The Ringer for the first three of these. Oops! But hey, better late than never. With Dennis Smith, Jr. off the board, the Knicks’ two likely picks here were Monk and Frank Ntilikina, and they opt for Monk. (Last update: Unknown)

Supremely athletic scorer who, while undersized as a 2, has tools to grow into a point guard.

Updated entries:

ESPN: The Knicks take Malik Monk, freshman G, Kentucky. Our boy Malik is storming back up the charts this week (well, more like he’s storming down the charts to the Knicks, but I digress). ESPN’s Chad Ford uses a variety of factors in his analysis, including front office chatter, to make his mock draft. It’s encouraging, then, that he has Orlando taking Jonathan Isaac instead of a guard at No. 6, which then prompts Minnesota to take Lauri Markkanen at No. 7, leaving the Knicks with their choice of Smith, Ntilikina or Monk at No. 8. That would probably be the ideal situation for both Knicks fans and the front office. (Last update: 6/6. Previous pick: Dennis Smith, Jr.)

The Knicks are looking at a number of backcourt players, including Monk, Smith and Frank Ntilikina.

Monk may be the highest upside player and best fit of the group. If he lands here, Knicks fans will love him when he heats up.

DraftExpress/The Vertical: The Knicks take Malik Monk, freshman G, Kentucky. So this one’s a little tricky, because DX’s Jonathan Givony writes the mocks for The Vertical. Technically, The Vertical’s mock hasn’t been updated since May 22. But DX’s entry has changed from the Knicks selecting Smith to now selecting Monk over Ntilikina and Smith. I can only assume the analysis on The Vertical is coming soon. (Last update: 6/3. Previous pick: Dennis Smith, Jr.)

SB Nation: The Knicks take Frank Ntilikina, PG, Strasbourg (FR). Ricky O’Donnell takes back over after Tom Ziller’s Lonzo-to-the-Knicks fever dream last week. In Ricky’s more reasonable take this week, the Knicks take Ntilikina over Smith. (Last update: 6/5. Previous pick: Lonzo Ball)

I would take Dennis Smith Jr. over Ntilikina, but I’m not sure the Knicks would for one reason: Ntilikina looks like a better fit in the Triangle, which Phil Jackson has been adamant about bringing back. A Triangle point guard (word to Ron Harper) needs good size, shooting ability, and a willingness to move the ball. Ntilikina checks those boxes. One concern: He’s still only 18 years old. Knicks fans will have to be patient with him.

Basketball Insiders: The Knicks take Malik Monk, freshman G, Kentucky. With the dearth of updated mocks this week, I’m foregoing the usual BBI consensus mock draft in favor of Steve Kyler’s individual mock this week. Am I breaking the rules? Maybe. But wait, I make the rules, so no I’m not! The Knicks take Monk over Ntilikina in this mock. (Last update: 6/6. Previous pick: Dennis Smith, Jr.)

BONUS: Kyler also did the second round, and has the Knicks taking Sindarius Thornwell at pick 44 and Kobi Simmons at pick 58. Clearly Kyler’s been keeping up with his Know the Prospects!

CBS Sports: The Knicks take Dennis Smith, Jr., freshman PG, NC State. CBS Sports’ Reid Forgrave and Gary Parrish are in agreement: Smith is the Knicks’ guy. Forgrave has the Knicks passing both Ntilikina and Monk for Smith; Parrish has Monk off the board. (Last update: 5/15. Previous pick: Dennis Smith, Jr.)

The Knicks are a mess and in need of basically everything -- including the point guard help that Smith would bring. At 6-3, he has nice size for the position and is explosive with the ball. The NC State product averaged 18.1 points, 6.2 assists and 4.6 rebounds in his one season of college basketball. He could be enough to make Kristaps Porzingis comfortable with a future in New York. And that should be New York's priority right now.

Heavy: The Knicks take Malik Monk, freshman G, Kentucky. This mock is a lot less in-depth than previous mocks by Heavy, but now also includes the second round (where the Knicks take Colorado PF Cameron Oliver and Villanova SG Josh Hart). The pick hasn’t changed from Monk, however, with the Knicks passing up Ntilikina. (Last update: 6/3. Previous pick: Malik Monk)

Old entries:

Fox Sports: The Knicks take Dennis Smith, Jr., freshman PG, NC State. (Last update: 5/31)

NBC Sports: The Knicks take Frank Ntilikina, PG, Strasbourg (FR). (Last update: 5/25)

Sports Illustrated: The Knicks take Dennis Smith, Jr., freshman PG, NC State. (Last update: 5/24)

FanRag Sports: The Knicks take Malik Monk, freshman G, Kentucky. (Last update: 5/26)

BONUS: Here’s a fun (read: terrifying) “mock draft” where Joseph Nardone at FRS breaks down what each team “will” do and what they “should” do in the Draft. The Knicks? They “will” draft Malik Monk (OK, not too bad). They “should” package the No. 8 pick with Carmelo as a sweetener to get another team to take him. :dead:

For obvious reasons I did not include this as an official “updated” entry, just figured I’d share.

NBADraft.net: The Knicks take Malik Monk, freshman G, Kentucky. (Last update: 5/29)

Sporting News: The Knicks take Frank Ntilikina, PG, Strasbourg (FR). (Last update: 5/21)

USA Today: The Knicks take Malik Monk, freshman G, Kentucky. (Last update: 5/17)

NBA.com: The Knicks take Jonathan Isaac, freshman F, Florida State. (Last update: 5/17)

HoopsHype: The Knicks take Malik Monk, freshman G, Kentucky. (Last update: 5/30)

Knicks Mock Draft Power Rankings 4.0

1. Malik Monk, freshman G, Kentucky (9 mocks)

2A. Dennis Smith, Jr., freshman PG, NC State (3 mocks)

2B. Frank Ntilikina, PG, Strasbourg (FR) (3 mocks)

4. Jonathan Isaac, freshman F, Florida State (1 mock)

Out: Lonzo Ball, freshman PG, UCLA (Previous: 4B, 1 mock)