Perhaps the most comical portion of the NBA draft every year is the reaction from the fans, namely New York Knicks fans.
After the crowd spent the evening booing commissioner David Stern at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., it was poor Kostas Papanikolaou’s turn …
to get booed hard when the Knicks selected him with the 48th pick overall.
Papanikolaou, a Greek forward, played well for Olympiacos, one of the best European teams, and could contribute in a few years when he comes over.
USA TODAY Sports gave the Knicks a B grade. New York fans, however, clearly gave the pick an F grade.
Knicks fans always provide an epic reaction. In this particular instance, after Deputy NBA commissioner Adam Silver announced the pick, Knicks fans showed looks of disgust and put their hands over their heads in confusion. “Whyyyyyy” was what Knicks fans mouthed. One small fan even performed a Dikembe Mutombo finger wave to show his disapproval.
“We think it’s an investment in our future,” Knicks general manager Glen Grunwald said. “Given with where we are at with our team and where we want to go, it was unlikely we were going to draft anyone in 48 that was going to step in immediately contribute. So we felt that this player could grow overseas. He’s got at least one more year left in his contract. We will evaluate him next year and we will decide when to bring him over..”
The Knicks entered the draft without a first round pick because they included it in the Tracy McGrady deal with the Houston Rockets back on Feb. 19, 2010.
WRITTEN BY Scott Gleeson, USA TODAYÂ & FULL STORY HERE
