2018 Orlando Magic NBA Draft Preview: Who is Kevin Knox?

The Good

Kevin Knox’s length and athleticism in transition is the first thing that pops out on tape.

When he gets out in transition, he looks natural and aggressive in the way he attacks the basket. Knox in transition is about as good as it gets. He will finish above the rim and work around defenders beneath it with an array of finishes.

That is all good in the open court. But Knox also looks to have plenty of comfort on the ball, something good in a player as big as he is at 6-foot-9.

Knox has a lot of fluid and natural movements on the ball. He does not look like someone who has had trouble growing into his body. He is very coordinated.

In that way, he looks similar to Michael Porter Jr. when he was healthy. Knox does not quite have the natural shot creation and scoring ability that Porter has, but he has a solid few moves to set up his jumper.

More than that, he works surprisingly well off the ball. He comes around cuts and curls well and in rhythm either to set up his jumper or to curl around into the paint for a drive or dive to the basket.

This is a credit to his athleticism. And that might be his best attribute.

Knox’s control is impressive. He can start and stop pretty quickly and change his shot angle in mid-air with ease. He can get his jumper off in a short amount of space and remain fairly accurate.

That is all an impressive thing for a 19-year-old player. And he could put things together for a long stretch of time for Kentucky.

And the best thing of all is if a defense leaves him open, Knox will hit the open shot. He is an effective enough 3-point shooter to keep defenses honest. Those are a lot of offensive tools to work with.

Throw in those physical attributes and he projects as a solid enough defender too. There is a lot to like even if it is still in an incomplete package as of now.