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The first meeting between Kevin Knox and Kristaps Porzingis took place Wednesday in Tarrytown. The foundations of the franchise have not yet spoken, but Knox was impressed.
"It's bigger than I expected," Knox 6-9 told The Post. "He is 7-3. I think when they are 7-3 years old, it's really a little over 7 feet. He is 7-3. Mitchell (Robinson) is about 7 feet tall. He was standing on Mitch.
The first match that Knox-Porzingis will share on the field must be determined, until the Knicks decide to let the Latvian lose. Developing their chemistry is the best reason to recover Porzingis sooner rather than later.
Porzingis was barely around the team after his ACL tear in February. It was around Wednesday.
"It seemed like it was going well, making good steps," said Knox, making a promotional appearance for Subway's new chipotle cheesesteak in Manhattan. "Porzingis was there to encourage us during the conditioning tests. He looked excited and I can not wait to play with him. He looked really healthy. "
Soon, there will be more topics to discuss than the Knox 21.3 average in its July Las Vegas summer league. The first practice of training camp is Tuesday and the preparatory game is scheduled for October 1 in Washington.
In last month's annual poll, Knox's teammates ranked him tied for third place with Luka Doncic for the rookie of the year and second as a rookie for the best career.
"It's great for a season that has not started with your colleagues," said the 19-year-old striker from Kentucky. "Third place, rookie of the year, second best in career. Of course, that's not where I want to be. I want to be first, but the season has not started yet and I have 82 games to prove them. "
He was joking – probably. Knicks' horns speak incessantly of Knox's devotion to "being great" and how that was the decisive factor between him and Mikal Bridges with choice No. 9 in the project.
"I work a lot and I think it will pay off," said Knox. "It paid off in the summer and I want to keep the same mentality. (David) Fizdale has helped me a lot this summer on things to work on. I really want to exceed expectations and have a great rookie year. "
A perfectionist, Knox also criticized his releases in Vegas. He shot 35% but that belies the all-star potential that he showed.
"A lot of times I have taken bad shots," said Knox. "I was able to make baskets and passes. This summer, I work a lot so that I spend a lot of time, whether in pick-and-roll, driving to the basket or kicking. I have watched a lot of movies from the summer league. I missed some layups, a lot of shots I had to do.
Proving his defense value could be key to Knox's bid for the rookie of the year. Fizdale said this week he was "defying him defensively" so he could "take his powers".
"It will be a difficult year," said Knox. "I know Fizdale – man of his word. He will put me on LeBron (James), KD (Kevin Durant), Giannis (Antetokounmpo) and see how I do defensively. It will be a great experience. Some nights I will be killed. Sometimes I will win. It's a learning experience. I'm going to have fun with that. I'm going to learn, watch a lot of movies from there, it's better. Some nights it's going to be hell. "
After the summer league, Knox was off to travel, but has been back in Tarrytown since the beginning of August.
"After the defensive work, moved LeBron to Miami, little tricks," Knox said of Fizdale's instructions.
Fizdale also urged Knox to take raw rookie Robinson under his wing as he has not played in this team since high school.
"He wanted me to play a leadership role. So I sent a text message to Mitchell [to] ask him if he wants to go to the gym with the coaches at 11 am Sunday, "said Robinson Knox, who jumped to college to prepare for the NBA draft.
"We had breakfast, worked, had lunch. We build this chemistry together. Mitch is laid back, does not speak much. I am one of the people he likes to talk to. I'm trying to make him feel more comfortable in the locker room.
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