Brandon Knight
If the name Brandon Knight rings any bells, that’s because his NBA career was memorable. Folks might be remembering his outside shooting ability, or solid play during his time with the Detroit Pistons and Milwaukee Bucks.
Some may remember the Kyrie Irving crossover on him in the Rising Stars game.
And of course, there may be some folks that are thinking about when he tried to stop a DeAndre Jordan lob and ended up on a historic poster.
We’re talking about him today because he’s back in the news.
Knight, who was last spotted in the NBA four years ago, just signed another professional basketball contract. He won’t be returning to the association, but will be heading to Australia.
The former lottery pick is looking to prove he’s still got it.
Brandon Knight Off to NBL
A number of prominent NBA players have spent time in the NBL. Currently, JaVale McGee is absolutely tearing it up over there. Each team has about nine regular season games left, and Brandon Knight will be joining the Perth Wildcats for the remainder of the year.
When we last saw Knight, he was playing for the Dallas Mavericks. His time there was brief during the 2021-22 season, as he logged just five games. He was there long enough though, to have a 2-minute highlight reel, seen below.
In those contests, Knight averaged six points and two assists per game. He also spent time in the league in Detroit and Milwaukee in his best years. Some time with the Houston Rockets and Cleveland Cavaliers as well, where he specialized as a three-point threat.
Not to be forgotten, was his time with the Phoenix Suns, where he averaged a career-high of 20 points per campaign during the 2015-16 year. He was playing with young Devin Booker in those days. Certainly some memories for Phoenix fans.
Knight, who was drafted to the NBA in 2011, is still just 34 years of age. He most recently played in the Baloncesto Superior Nacional. You can see highlights below of him dropping 31 points in a game this past October.
Signing on to play in the NBL is certainly one way to keep going.
Next Steps for Brandon Knight
While it does appear unlikely at this point that an NBA return could happen for Brandon Knight, anything can truly happen. Players like Emeka Okafor and Marshon Brooks were able to return to the league after 3-4 year absences previously.
Brooks even went from no games in the league for three full seasons, to averaging 20 per game over a prolonged stretch for the Memphis Grizzlies.
Knight should be able to showcase plenty of talent with the Perth Wildcats. The team is currently 14-10, sitting at #5 in the NBL standings. He is joining two other former NBA players here. Dylan Windler, a former first-round pick of the Cleveland Cavaliers has played strong ball in the NBL.
And then there’s Knight’s positional running mate, Mason Jones, who has logged minutes for four NBA clubs, most recently the Sacramento Kings a year ago.
Knight will add some veteran leadership here, while hopefully showing he can still reach the level he did in the BSN.
It’s fantastic to see the NBA veteran back in the headlines, and now we’ll see if it leads anywhere.