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NBA Draft 2018 Prospect Watch: Kevin Knox II

By Jordan Treske

BOISE, ID - MARCH 17: Kevin Knox #5 of the Kentucky Wildcats reacts during the first half against the Buffalo Bulls in the second round of the 2018 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Taco Bell Arena on March 17, 2018 in Boise, Idaho. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
BOISE, ID - MARCH 17: Kevin Knox #5 of the Kentucky Wildcats reacts during the first half against the Buffalo Bulls in the second round of the 2018 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Taco Bell Arena on March 17, 2018 in Boise, Idaho. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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BOISE, ID – MARCH 17: (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
BOISE, ID – MARCH 17: (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /

Leading off our coverage of prospects who have declared for the 2018 NBA Draft, we take a look at the services of one-and-done forward Kevin Knox, formerly of the University of Kentucky.

Who is Kevin Knox?

The Milwaukee Bucks’ season has come to a close and with that, it’s time to shift gears and look ahead to the players who will surely be the talk of the league in the lead up to the 2018 NBA Draft.

With that, we’ll be looking at those same prospects who are eager to achieve their dream of playing in the NBA, starting with forward Kevin Knox from the University of Kentucky.

A native of Tampa Bay, FL., Knox has certainly made a name for himself as a high-level recruit, considering he put together an accomplished résumé well before he hit the collegiate ranks this season.

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Between playing for Tampa Catholic High School as well as being a fixture on the AAU circuit, Knox became one of the top players in his class as he not only became a McDonald’s All-American but was named Florida Mr. Basketball in his senior year of high school.

Along with that, the 18-year-old had the honor of representing Team USA in both the 2015 FIBA Americas U-16 Championship and the 2016 FIBA U-17 World Championships, competitions in which Knox came away with a gold medal.

For all those reasons and the potential he’s often displayed as well, Knox was a top target for the big name schools in college basketball well into the recruiting process since his final decision didn’t come until this time last year. As hot of a commodity as Knox was to the top schools in the country, he also garnered interest from teams overseas as his father told Bob Putnam of the Tampa Bay Times in April of 2017:

"“He has already turned down an offer to turn pro as soon as he graduates from Tampa Catholic. A professional team from China called his parents last month, offering $1.4 million for their son to play overseas for a year before entering the NBA draft. “I didn’t put much stock into the offer,” said his father, also named Kevin. “We politely said thanks but no thanks. He’s going to college.”"

In the end, it was Lexington where Knox chose to spend his lone season on the college level playing under John Calipari for the University of Kentucky. With the Wildcats this year, Knox adapted well to the collegiate setting for the majority of the season before eventually being named the SEC Freshman of the Year as well as First-team All-SEC following the end of the year.

Finally, just a few weeks after the Wildcats were knocked out in the Sweet 16 of the 2018 NCAA Tournament by the Kansas State Wildcats, Knox declared for the 2018 NBA Draft on April 6 and hired an agent, which means he is officially foregoing his remaining three years of college eligibility.

So with all that out of the way, let’s further break down Kevin Knox’s game, both the positives and negatives, and much more.

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