The Knicks won the first NBA Draft lottery in 1985, using the No. 1 pick to grab Hall of Fame center Patrick Ewing.
It's a moment frozen in time — and perhaps cardboard — that lives on because of all the moments that have not followed. The Knicks have not landed the No. 1 pick since that first lottery, but they are hoping that changes Tuesday night. New York had the worst record in the NBA at 17-65, which means it has the best chance at the top pick (14 percent odds along with the Cavs and Suns).
NBA DRAFT LOTTERY:
Revisiting the results and top picks that changed the league
Duke star Zion Williamson is the popular choice to be that pick, and much like Ewing, he has the potential to change the franchise's future and reinvigorate the fan base.
But this is the Knicks, and their lottery history is anything but a best-case scenario since landing Ewing in 1985. Here is a closer look at New York's brutal NBA lottery history ever since — a total of 15 adventures that didn't go quite so smoothly.
1986 NBA Draft lottery
Lottery: The Knicks had the worst record in the NBA at 23-59, but they fell four spots to No. 5. The Clippers won the lottery.
Draft: New York drafted Kenny "Sky" Walker from Kentucky with the No. 5 pick in a draft that is most remembered for Boston taking Len Bias and his tragic death two days later.
Fallout: The Clippers traded with the Cavs, and they drafted Brad Daugherty at No. 1. Daugherty, Indiana's Chuck Person (No. 4) and Cleveland's Ron Harper (No. 8) were all 10,000-point scorers in the league.
1987 NBA Draft lottery
Lottery: The Knicks fell three spots to No. 5 and traded the pick to Seattle.
Draft: New York selected Mark Jackson at No. 18, but it's what the Sonics did with that No. 3 pick that hurts. They drafted Scottie Pippen and traded him to Chicago for Olden Polynice.
Fallout: Pippen became the wingman for Michael Jordan in six NBA Finals championship runs. New York also passed on Reggie Miller at No. 11. Jackson would join Miller in Indiana and fuel the Knicks-Pacers rivalry in the mid-90s.
2002 NBA Draft lottery
Lottery: The Knicks stayed in the No. 7 spot.
Draft: New York drafted Nene with the No. 7 pick, then traded him to Denver as part of a blockbuster deal that landed Antonio McDyess. New York drafted Illinois guard Frank Wiliams at No. 25.
Fallout: McDyess injured his knee in 2002 and played in just 18 games for the Knicks before being traded to Phoenix. Williams played just two seasons in New York. Nene just finished up his 17th season in the NBA.
2003 NBA Draft lottery
Lottery: The Knicks stayed in the No. 9 spot.
Draft: New York drafted Georgetown's Michael Sweetney.
Fallout: Of the all the years to not be in the top five, this was the worst one. LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade were among the top-five picks. New York would get Anthony later, but it would have been better to have him from the start. Sweetney, a 6-8, 275-pound forward, lasted two years in New York before being traded to Chicago.
2005 NBA Draft lottery
Lottery: The Knicks stayed in the No. 8 spot.
Draft: New York selected Channing Frye at No. 8.
Fallout: Frye spent just two seasons in New York before being sent to Portland. Frye was a role player on the Cavaliers' championship team in 2016.
2006 NBA Draft lottery
Lottery: The Knicks had the No. 2 pick, but team president Isiah Thomas traded that pick to the Bulls as part of the deal that landed Eddy Curry and Antonio Davis.
Draft: The Bulls then traded that pick to Portland, which used it to draft LaMarcus Aldridge at No. 2. The Knicks traded into the first round and grabbed South Carolina's Renaldo Balkman (No. 20) and Temple's Mardy Collins (No. 29).
Fallout: Balkman played four seasons through two stints with the Knicks. Collins made 17 starts over two-plus seasons before being traded to the Clippers. Aldridge is a seven-time All-Star and five-time All-NBA player.
2007 NBA Draft lottery
Lottery: The Knicks held the No. 9 spot, but they flipped first-round picks as part of the Curry deal with the Bulls.
Draft: Chicago drafted Joakim Noah with the No. 9 pick. New York drafted DePaul's Wilson Chandler (No. 23) in the first round.
Fallout: The Knicks landed Zach Randolph as part of a draft-night trade with Portland. Noah is a two-time All-Star and three-time All-Defensive player who ended up in New York in 2016. Chandler was part of the 13-player trade that brought Anthony to New York in 2011.
2008 NBA Draft lottery
Lottery: New York dropped one spot in the lottery to the No. 6 pick.
Draft: The Knicks drafted Danilo Gallinari from Italy with the No. 6 pick.
Fallout: The Timberwolves took Kevin Love at No. 5, and the Clippers took Eric Gordon at No. 7. Love is a five-time All-Star who helped the Cavaliers win the 2016 NBA title. Gallinari played with the Knicks for two-plus seasons, and he was also part of the deal that brought Anthony to New York.
2009 NBA Draft lottery
Lottery: The Knicks stayed in the No. 8 spot.
Draft: New York drafted Arizona's Jordan Hill at No. 8.
Fallout: Look at the picks before and after Hill. The Warriors selected Stephen Curry with the No. 7 pick, and the Raptors landed DeMar DeRozan at No. 9. Blake Griffin (No. 1) and James Harden (No. 3) were also top-five picks in this draft. Hill played in just 24 games for the Knicks before being shipped to Houston at the trade deadline.
2010 NBA Draft lottery
Lottery: The Knicks had the No. 9 pick, but that went to the Suns as part of a trade Thomas made in 2004 for Stephon Marbury. Utah traded for the pick.
Draft: The Jazz drafted Gordon Hayward with that pick. New York drafted Syracuse's Andy Rautins and Stanford's Landry Fields in the second round.
Fallout: Hayward has averaged 15.1 points per game for his career through stops in Utah and Boston. Fields played two seasons for New York. Rautins played in just five games.
2014 NBA Draft lottery
Lottery: The Knicks had the No. 12 pick, but it went to Denver as a result of the Anthony trade in 2011.
Draft: Denver traded the pick to Orlando, which picked Dario Saric before trading him to Philadelphia. New York picked Wichita State's Cleanthony Early and Thanasis Antetokounmpo from Greece in the second round.
Fallout: The Knicks drafted the wrong Antetokounmpo. He played in just two games for New York, and Early played two seasons. Saric has averaged 12.7 points per game through stops with Philadelphia and Minnesota.
2015 NBA Draft lottery
Lottery: The Knicks had the second-worst record in the NBA at 17-65, which was just one game better than Minnesota. The Timberwolves got the No. 1 pick, and the Knicks slipped two spots to No. 4.
Draft: Minnesota drafted Karl-Anthony Towns, and New York settled for Kristaps Porzingis.
Fallout: Towns is a two-time All-Star for Minnesota. New York dealt Porzingis to Dallas this season while he was recovering from an ACL injury. D'Angelo Russell, who led Brooklyn to the playoffs this season and averaged 21.2 points per game, was the No. 2 pick in this draft.
2016 NBA Draft lottery
Lottery: New York had the No. 7 pick, but it went to Denver as part of the Anthony deal.
Draft: Denver selected Kentucky's Jamal Murray with the No. 7 pick. The Knicks also owed picks to Toronto and Portland in this draft, so they did not make a pick.
Fallout: Murray averaged 18.2 points for Denver this past season and helped the Nuggets nearly reach the Western Conference finals. Toronto drafted Jakob Poeltl, who became a key piece in the Kawhi Leonard trade. Houston ended up with Portland's pick and drafted Chinanu Onuaku, a 6-10 center.
2017 NBA Draft lottery
Lottery: The Knicks slipped from No. 7 to No. 8 in the NBA Draft lottery.
Draft: New York drafted guard Frank Ntilikina with the No. 8 pick.
Fallout: Ntilikina has averaged 5.9 points through two seasons. Minnesota took Lauri Markkanen with the No. 7 pick and traded him to Chicago. He has averaged 16.7 points through two seasons. Denver drafted Donovan Mitchell at No. 13 and traded him to Utah. He has scored 23.4 points per game through two seasons.
2018 NBA Draft lottery
Lottery: The Knicks stayed in the No. 9 spot.
Draft: New York selected Kentucky's Kevin Knox at No. 9.
Fallout: It is a solid start to New York's rebuild, but it's also a rookie class that featured Deandre Ayton (No. 1), Luka Doncic (No. 3) and Trae Young (No. 5). The Knicks are desperate for a star of that caliber, and Williamson could be that player in 2019.
