Knicks Rookies Shine in Beatdown of Wizards

Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau has never been shy about running shortened lineups. So it was a surprise when the team left draft night 2024 with three shiny newbies: Pacome Dadiet, Tyler Kolek and Ariel Hukporti.

All three offer vastly different skillsets, and one day hope to become mainstays in New York’s rotation.

So far, the trio has yet to make a splash on an extremely talented roster. But in a 134-106 beatdown of the young Wizards on Monday, the Knicks were able to put their rookies on the floor.

The team’s core of Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart all finished in double-digit scoring, jumping out to a big lead and allowing the youngsters to play late.

Dadiet and Kolek, the team’s top two picks, were able to get their most burn of the season at 18 and 17 minutes, respectively.

Kolek, a savvy multi-year guard at the collegiate level, was able to slice-and-dice his way to five points, three assists and one steal. It wasn’t a gaudy stat line, but Kolek’s pace, craft and maneuverability visibly look close to pro-level already.

Dadiet scored a career-high nine points, on 3-for-7 shooting, shooting 50% from beyond the arc on six attempts while adding three rebounds and two assists.

Hukporti added a bucket and rebound in six minutes.

While none of the performances are likely to vault the freshmen into the team’s solidified rotation, any sort of positive contributions in the interim serve as a launch pad for just that down the road.

For now, Kolek seems to be the closest, averaging 3.5 point on 57% shooting in just over six minutes per contest played.

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