While the New York Knicks haven’t made any notable roster moves to start the year, the franchise’s G-League affiliate, the Westchester Knicks, made an interesting signing on Saturday.
The minor-league organization struck a deal with the 24-year-old son of a former NBA All-Star.
“The Westchester Knicks have acquired Jamal Mashburn Jr. (Father played in the NBA for a little over a decade and earned an All-Star invitation in 2003) as part of a Hardship Exception via available player pool,” Westchester announced on X/Twitter.
The start of Mashburn’s professional career has been chaotic, to say the least. After spending the final season of his collegiate career with Temple, Mashburn officially entered the professional realm in October.
Westchester selected Mashburn with the No. 8 pick in the annual G-League draft. However, shortly after, the franchise traded him to the Grand Rapids Gold (Denver Nuggets’ G League affiliate), giving him a sense of how quickly an organization can move on from particular assets.
Now that the Miami, Florida native is back with the organization that drafted him in October, he should look forward to the opportunity to make a statement during his rookie season.
If all goes well, Mashburn, who averaged 22.0 points per game on 42.9% field goal shooting and 43.1% three-point shooting as a senior with the Owls, could improve his odds of eventually joining Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns on the Knicks in the NBA.
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