The New York Knicks are giving Toby Okani another look this summer, and he’ll do it alongside a familiar West Virginia face.
Okani has been added to the Knicks’ Summer League roster, the team announced Thursday, joining former Mountaineer teammate Treysen Eaglestaff, who was already reported to be part of the group. Their first game together comes Friday, July 10th, against the San Antonio Spurs.
The Knicks already know Okani well. He spent the start of last season with their G League affiliate, the Westchester Knicks, where he appeared in 34 games and averaged 5.6 points, 2.7 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 0.6 steals, and 0.3 blocks per contest.
From there, Okani’s year took a sharp turn. After going undrafted last summer, he still reached the NBA in his first season out of college, landing a 10-day contract with the Memphis Grizzlies. That short stint came with real minutes, too - he played north of 36 minutes per game in his six appearances.
And he made those chances count. In his NBA debut against the Toronto Raptors, Okani finished with seven points and seven rebounds.
Five days later, in his fourth career game, he put up 15 points against the Denver Nuggets. The next time out, he hit his career high with 20 points on 9/22 shooting against the Utah Jazz.
He wrapped up the season averaging 10 points, 3.5 rebounds, and one assist on 35% shooting.
Okani isn’t the type of player expected to carry an offense, but he did enough in limited NBA action to get noticed again. That’s why the Knicks are bringing him back into the mix for another evaluation this summer.
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