The New York Knicks selected West Virginia Mountaineers guard Miles “Deuce” McBride with the 36th pick in the NBA draft in 2021.
McBride averaged 12.6 points, 3.3 assists and 2.3 rebounds per game across his two seasons with the Mountaineers, earning Big 12 All-Freshman honors in 2020, and All-Big 12 honors in 2021, where he averaged 15.9 points per game and shot 41% from 3.
Since being selected by the Knicks, McBride has split time in the G-League and with the Knicks, mostly playing in garbage time for the big league club.
Despite a lack of playing time that would have frustrated many players, McBride knew he had to wait for his opportunity and keep the positivity he brought in his time in Morgantown.
“It’s something I knew I always could do. Coach has gone in different directions. I can’t control that. I can control my attitude and the positivity I bring to the team,” McBride said.
On Dec. 3, Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau decided to make a change, replacing reserve point guard Derrick Rose with Deuce in the rotation.
“It was adding more of a defensive component to our team, as it was with Quentin [Grimes] as well,” Thibodeau said on adding McBride to the rotation.
Since being added to the rotation, McBride has played at least 13 minutes in every game for the Knicks in that span, averaging 4.5 points per game but providing quality defense that is expected from a Bob Huggins coached player. He has an 87.7 defensive rating this season, and is averaging almost a steal per game in just over 10 minutes per game.
McBride is waiting for his offense to translate to the NBA game, but he’s shown his ability to score in the G-League, averaging over 25 points per game in his six games played there, to go along with nearly nine assists per game.
Photo by Dale Sparks, All Pro Photography
