Knicks' Kevin Knox II out of 2021 NBA Summer League Because of COVID-19 Protocols

New York Knicks forward Kevin Knox II won't be with the team during the NBA summer league. 

The franchise announced Thursday that the 21-year-old has entered the league's health and safety protocols. 

Knox was one of 15 players the Knicks included on their summer-league roster, which was announced Monday.

Per SNY's Ian Begley, Knox requested to play in the summer league. 

Even though he's three-year veteran, Knox's development stalled in 2020-21 during Tom Thibodeau's first season as head coach. The Kentucky product set career lows in virtually every statistical category, including scoring average (3.9 points per game), rebounds (1.5) and assists (0.5). 

Things got so bad for Knox that he was removed from the rotation in February. He averaged 4.6 minutes per game in his final 22 appearances during the regular season. The forward's only appearance in the playoffs was late in the fourth quarter of New York's 113-96 loss to the Atlanta Hawks in Game 4 of the first-round series.

Knox has one more guaranteed year remaining on his rookie contract. He was New York's top pick in the 2018 draft (No. 9 overall). 

The Knicks will open summer-league play in Las Vegas on Aug. 8 against the Toronto Raptors.