No Change for Knicks Outlook At Lottery

Lack of luck means the Knicks have the same issues as before

It's hard to be disappointed by the outcome of the draft lottery. You don't get disappointed when your number doesn't come up in Powerball, after all. It's just the luck of the draw, and the Knicks find themselves in exactly the same spot they were in before any ping pong balls were drawn on Tuesday night.

Still, it was nice to conjure up visions of Blake Griffin thundering down court on a fast break or Ricky Rubio dazzling the Garden crowd with ball-handling out of a circus act. Those visions will remain just that, barring an unlikely trade to the top of the pecking order, and the Knicks and their fans will have to make do with the realities of the eighth pick.

Checking out just about every mock draft finds that means Stephen Curry of Davidson, which isn't surprising since he's been linked to the Knicks since the moment he threw his name into the draft. It makes sense. Curry can shoot and he's been hailed as having a high basketball IQ, two things that would serve him well in Mike D'Antoni's offense. Those are swell attributes, so why does the prospect feel so underwhelming?

It's underwhelming because it's just more of the same. Another complementary player for a team that has no leaders, another might be on a team that needs a sure thing and another reminder that better days are still miles away. Sure, there will be other machinations from D'Antoni and Donnie Walsh and those machinations might add up to a few more wins and a slightly better chance at a cameo playoff appearance, but how many years can you subsist on those meager hopes?

So, while there's no disappointment from the lottery, there's no reason to change expectations either. That may turn out to be a good thing, if only because Knicks expectations are seemingly destined to end in disappointment.

Josh Alper is a writer living in New York City and is a contributor to FanHouse.com and ProFootballTalk.com in addition to his duties for NBCNewYork.com.

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