They ultimately did well, but didn’t get a major impact player such as Duarte for this season.Īfter a series of trades, they wound up with picks 25 (Quentin Grimes), 34 ( European stash pick Rokas Jokubaitis) and 35 (Miles McBride) and 58 (Jericho Sims). The Knicks ended up selecting Quentin Grimes. The Pacers knew they had a potential standout in the 6-foot-6 shooter and didn’t care about his advanced age for a rookie or unorthodox late-blooming background during which he played a year of high school ball in upstate Troy. Had the Pacers not picked him, the Warriors would have taken him at 14. The Knicks tried to trade up in the draft for Duarte at 13 but were unsuccessful. Knicks executive William Wesley was very high on Duarte.ĭuarte wound up working out for the Knicks, Pacers, Hornets, Warriors, Wizards, Spurs and Thunder. “He wasn’t lasting until 19.’’ Chris Duarte against the Raptors on Nov. “By the time Duarte started doing workouts, it was over,’’ one NBA source said. According to a source, the Pacers fell in love. The Pacers had Duarte work out against Gonzaga forward Corey Kispert, LSU guard Cam Thomas (now a Net) and Stanford wing Ziaire Williams. Duarte didn’t start to conduct team workouts until late in the process. People close to Duarte, who was born in the Dominican Republic, were amenable to a guarantee from the Knicks – perhaps because of New York City’s robust Dominican population.ĭuarte was one of the few top prospects held out of the draft combine from June 22-26. Chris Duarte torched the Knicks in the Pacers’ rout. If Duarte had received a Knicks guarantee at a certain juncture, he likely would have not worked out for other teams and, hence, increased his chances of falling to 19. The Knicks did not go that far when they still had the chance. 13 to the Pacers.Īccording to an NBA source, the Knicks had a chance to give Duarte’s reps a guarantee at 19 before he had conducted any personal workouts. But The Post has learned the Knicks may have not done enough early in the draft process to secure the 24-year-old Oregon sharpshooter, who went at No. In continuing his fine first season, Duarte poured in 23 points in 30 minutes, shooting 9 of 11 from the field, 2 for 2 from 3-point land and dishing out six assists.Īs reported first by The Post, Duarte was a top target of the Knicks in the 2021 NBA Draft in July. One of the indignities of the Knicks getting routed Wednesday in Indiana was the sterling performance by Pacers rookie shooting guard Chris Duarte. Knicks’ Overtime Elite signee has a familiar mentor Knicks veteran’s tenure with team appears to be over The Future of the Knicks Roster: Key Moves to Watch Where Knicks-Josh Hart situation stands right now
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