Knicks won't have players in Summer League to help rotation
Trevor Keels of the Knicks passes under pressure from Selom Mawugbe and Mac McClung of Golden State during the 2022 NBA Summer League at the Thomas & Mack Center. Credit: Getty Images/Ethan Miller
Normally, even in a season without a first-round pick, the summer league presents an opportunity for a young player to return to action in a prominent role. But the Knicks enter the Las Vegas Summer League this week with a roster that might not have a single rotation piece playing.
Part of it is a lack of draft picks. The Knicks didn’t have a first-round pick this summer or last summer. This latest draft the Knicks didn’t even have a second-round pick and the lone Knicks draft pick on the roster is last year’s second-rounder, Trevor Keels. But unlike a second-round pick like Deuce McBride, who joined the team as a 2021 second-round choice, and was a part of the rotation for Tom Thibodeau, Keels appeared in just three games, totaling eight minutes.
Keels played in the second game of the season — one minute — and didn’t play again with the Knicks until the 64th game of the season when he got three minutes in a one-sided Knicks victory, scoring his first NBA points when he connected on a three-point field goal. He added four minutes in the 72nd game of the season.
Keels also played in 24 games for the Westchester Knicks of the G League, averaging 14.5 points in 31.3 minutes per game — shooting 42.5% including 34.5% from beyond the arc.
The player who could find his way onto the roster with a vacancy at backup power forward is Isaiah Roby, who was signed for the final day of the regular season after appearing in 42 games for the San Antonio Spurs. He previously spent three seasons with Oklahoma City, starting 62 games. The Knicks dealt away Obi Toppin Saturday, sending him to Indiana for a pair of future second-round picks — a deal that will be officially announced Thursday. The Knicks only options as backup power forward behind Julius Randle are Josh Hart and RJ Barrett.
The Knicks summer league roster is more notable for who is not playing. Jericho Sims, who played last summer, is still rehabilitating from shoulder surgery. Two players without NBA experience who at least created some intrigue will not be there. Jacob Toppin, who was signed to a two-way contract is not participating because of what the team only described as a minor injury. Rokas Jokubaitis, who was drafted in the second round in 2021 by the Knicks, will not participate because of commitments to the Lithuanian national team.
The Knicks will open their Summer League schedule Saturday against Philadelphia.
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
