With the Knicks locked in with the No. 8 pick, coach Mike D'Antoni weighed in yesterday on Davidson point guard Stephen Curry - the front-runner to wear a blue-and-orange jersey.
Reached in Mullens, W. Va., where he is spending the week in his home state doing speaking engagements, D'Antoni didn't sound disappointed the Knicks didn't get a higher spot in Tuesday's lottery. The Knicks want to add a guard with playmaking and shooting skills to their roster by June 25. Curry's new agent spoke to the Knicks yesterday as they attempted to arrange a workout in Westchester around June 5.
"He's going to be a really good pro," D'Antoni told The Post. "But it's too early to gauge. There's four of them we've looked at [on film], and I'm sure that will expand. I didn't think it's disappointing. We didn't drop back. We could get a good player at 8. Sometimes you make mistakes at 3."
Last week, the 6-foot-3 Curry hired agent Jeff Austin, who represented his father, Dell Curry. Austin had a strong conversation with Knicks team president Donnie Walsh last week about Curry.
"The Knicks have clearly shown interest," Austin said yesterday. "And Stephen feels the same way. He has interest in them."
Austin said he will schedule workouts for Curry with lottery teams between 5 and 14, and has fielded several calls. Curry, the nation's leading scorer, is working out at in Washington, D.C.
Austin said Curry's friendship with LeBron James, whom the Knicks dream of attracting in 2010, is genuine. Curry worked at James' Basketball camp in Cleveland last summer.
"They've played against each other at the camp, scrimmaging," Austin said. "They definitely still talk."
D'Antoni and Walsh will attend the NBA Combine on May 28-29 in Chicago and begin pre-draft workouts in Westchester June 1.
Also on their radar are point guards, Tyreke Evans, Jrue Holiday, Jonny Flynn, Brandon Jennings, Tyson Law and USC shooting guard DeMar DeRozan.
