Knicks Rumors: Rounding Up Latest 2021 NBA Draft Buzz Ahead of Lottery

The 2021 NBA draft lottery is upon us. At 8:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, the league will determine which teams will select at the top of July's draft. For the New York Knicks, though, the lottery is largely irrelevant—at least for the time being.

For the first time since the 2012-13 season, the Knicks made the playoffs this year. While New York does currently hold two first-round selections—its own and that of the Dallas Mavericks—it has no chance of landing a lottery pick.

The Orlando Magic, Detroit Pistons and Houston Rockets all have an equal 14-percent chance of securing the No. 1 selection.

Where the lottery could come into play for New York is on the trade front. Marc Berman of the New York Post reported in early June that the Knicks are interested in moving up in the first round—possibly packaging the 19th and 21st overall selections as part of a deal.

"Chief strategist Brock Aller will look to deal picks and money to move into the lottery, according to sources," Berman wrote. "[Coach Tom] Thibodeau doesn’t want too many more prospects on his roster. Also, the Knicks are one of the few teams who will have some cap space on draft night to make a trade smoother."

Berman didn't name a specific prospect the Knicks could be targeting, and this is where the lottery may be important. Oklahoma State's Cade Cunningham is widely expected to be the No. 1 pick. After him, though, the selection order could hinge entirely on which teams are on the clock.

Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman recently ranked Cunningham, Jalen Green, Evan Mobley and Jalen Suggs as his top four draft prospects.

"Cunningham is locked into the top spot and Suggs is a hair behind Green and Mobley, based on Suggs' weaker handle for creation and low-volume three-point numbers," he wrote.

New York's desire to move up could be situational, but the Knicks have a playoff-caliber roster and may not be interested in keeping multiple rookies on it.

"That's a question some agents with players in New York's range are asking. They don't see the Knicks keeping all of their early picks (**No. 19, No. 21, No. 32)," Yahoo Sports' Ian Begley wrote. "Several opposing teams with picks near New York's feel the same way."

So, if the Knicks are looking to move up in the draft and don't have a specific target in mind, the question becomes this: How high can they move up?

One unnamed executive told Begley that packaging the No. 19, No. 21 and No. 32 picks could put the Knicks into the top eight.

So, while New York isn't likely to have a crack at players such as Green and Mobley—and certainly not Cunningham—it could have a shot at guys like Duke's Jalen Johnson and Turkish prospect Alperen Sengun.

We're not likely to see a trade in the coming days, but the Knicks' draft picture should become at least a little clearer on Tuesday night.