Whatever it takes
Veteran Knight looks for way to stick with Nets
Brandon Knight shouldn’t have been in Summer League this offseason. He was the No. 8 overall pick in the 2011 draft. The Summer League ship was supposed to have sailed years ago.
But injuries, those damn injuries, they never discriminate. Knight, a dynamic playmaking point guard who averaged just under 20 points per game for the Suns in 2015-16, tore his ACL in 2017. He suffered at least seven more leg injuries in the three ensuing years.
That ACL injury put Knight’s career in jeopardy. The Nets offered him an invitation to compete and help lead a young team.
“I’m thankful for them for letting me come out and show that I’m healthy, show that I can play long minutes,” the veteran point guard said on Tuesday, “and, you know, be somewhat productive and continue to play this game.”
Knight’s days as a budding star in this league are long gone. Soon to be 30, the streaky shooter and crafty playmaker has no delusions of grandeur. He shot less than 30% from the field and less than 20% from threepoint range in four Summer League games. That won’t cut it, at least not for a player getting extended minutes on a competitive team.
But it’s more than just the shooting percentages, now. It’s more than minutes on the floor, or a position of authority on a roster.
“I’ll do whatever, man. I’m at a point in my career where I just want to serve,” Knight said after his final Summer League game. “If a team brings me in and they want me to bring water, tie a shoe, whatever it is, man. I’m a humble guy, and I understand the importance of roles.”
Knight realistically has two options: Join a rebuilding team as that mentor off the bench, or join a team like the Nets — a team competing for a championship that needs veteran depth across the board.
“If I get a chance to go to a rebuilding team that needs a veteran leader and wants to build up the young guys, I’ll do that,” he said. “And if I go to a team like the Nets, I’m gonna lead, and lead in what capacity they allow me to lead in.
“You’ve got three of the top dogs that have ever played in the game on the Nets. So they need guys that are always even-keeled no matter what, up or down, because they’re gonna have fluctuations. So you’ve got to have a support group that’s gonna always be the same, and that’s all I can be for the Nets.”
A stronger performance in Las Vegas would have helped his case. Knight looked healthy, but his jump shot did not. Again, though, a team in the rebuilding phase that signs Knight would be in it less for the production on the floor and more for the impact he can have on the young players on the roster.
“We’re so thankful as a coaching staff, as an organization that he chose us,” said Nets Summer League coach Jordan Ott. “The highest of high-level character guys that I’ve ever been around.
“Even to the end, he’s asking me questions, basketball-wise, where I should be asking him questions from all his experience. The way he handled himself for these two weeks, no, we’re very grateful that he chose us.”
Teams also can’t expect Knight to shoot it this poorly in the regular season: He tested positive for COVID-19 in the middle of July, stayed in bed for 12 days and lost 12 pounds, watching all his conditioning work go down the drain.
That didn’t stop him from answering the Summer League call. Knight says prayer got him through the injuries and COVID, and it’s going to get him through to the next phase of his career.
Wherever that might be.
“I’m gonna break down this film, and then get right in the lab and start working and see what happens, man, keep praying,” Knight said. “At the end of the day, I’ve done what I can do, and I’ve gotta let the chips fall where they fall. Just have faith in it, man, have faith in your work.
“The only thing I could do is not quit. A lot of people wouldn’t come and play Summer League in my position, but I had nothing to hide, and anytime I get a chance to play is a blessing, man, trust me. You’ve been out the game and you can’t walk. You can’t move. You can’t do this. You can’t do that. Anytime I got a chance to play and this gave me an opportunity. It’s a blessing. So I just keep doing what I’ve been doing.”