Know The Draft Prospect: Alex Karaban

As we inch closer and closer to the 2026 NBA Draft, we continue our series looking at potential draft prospects. In this edition, could the Knicks take a swing at another older, two-time national champion from the Big East with their second-round pick?

The Basics

• School: UConn
• Position: SF/PF
• Height: 6’7”
• Weight: 225 lbs
• Age: 23 (Born November 11, 2002)
• 2025-26 Stats: 13.2 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 2.4 APG, 0.8 BLK, 0.8 STL, 46.4% FG, 37.4% 3PT, 85.1% FT
• Projected Draft Range: Early second round (30–40)

The Numbers

Karaban grew up in Massachusetts, but only spent his freshman year of high school at Algonquin Regional in Northborough before transferring to New Hampton School in New Hampshire, where he won New Hampshire Gatorade Player of the Year as a junior. With plenty of collegiate interest, he transferred again to IMG Academy in Florida for his senior year.

As a four-star recruit in the Class of 2022, he earned dozens of offers and made official visits to Northwestern, Penn State, and UConn. In the end, he chose Dan Hurley and the Huskies, who were playing just their second season back in the Big East after a forgettable seven years in the AAC. He was even able to graduate high school a semester early, enrolling for the Spring 2022 semester and redshirting.

Right out of the gate, Karaban was a starter for UConn, ultimately finishing with 150 career starts in 151 games played over four years. He would go on to be named to the Big East All-Freshman Team in 2022-23, be named to two All-Big East teams, win two national championships, and go out being named to the All-NCAA Tournament team in 2026.

Throughout his career, he was known as a great shooter, shooting 37.4% from three on over five attempts a game while being one of the best free-throw shooters in college basketball (84.4%). He was never overly impressive defensively, but averaged 1.5 blocks a game as a junior in 2024-25. He also routinely led the Huskies in minutes and even led the entire Big East in 2025-26.

Skills That Pay the Bills

• Three-Point Shooting: Karaban has been an above-average shooter in three of his four collegiate seasons. The ability to knock down open jumpers will always be valuable
• Team Defense: While he isn’t some one-on-one lockdown force, he consistently makes the right reads on the defensive end, knowing when to switch, making hard closeouts, and has enough size to hold his own down low. He’s not a 1-through-5 defender, but he’s comfortable 2 through 4.
• Good Decision Maker: He’s never going to be someone to run an offense, but he makes good decisions with the ball in his hands. Playing a higher usage role at UConn than he will in the pros, he consistently had an assist-to-turnover ratio of over 2.0. He’s also got a nose for making plays off the ball.
• Size and Length: He stands 6’7” without shoes, has a 6’11” wingspan, and has an 8’8” standing reach. That’ll play for a wing in the NBA.
• Big-Game Experience: Karaban is a two-time national champion and has played in 20 NCAA Tournament games, including six Final Four games. He was the stable rock and locker room leader for arguably the best program in the country in his 4.5 years there. While the latter might not be necessary as a rookie coming into the NBA, he’s as battle-tested as any rookie in this draft.

Concerns

• Limited Offensive Game: Karaban can knock down open shots and is a strong cutter and off-ball mover. Outside of that? He’s very limited. You rarely see him create his own shot, and he’s very dependent on others creating those looks for him.
• Not Overly Athletic: Doesn’t have the foot speed to be a truly versatile defender. He’ll struggle in certain matchups against smaller guards. While he was a strong finisher at UConn, he wasn’t much of a dunker.
• Defensive Limitations: He won’t be hunted out there, but he’ll be vulnerable if he’s switched onto dynamic offensive threats. You won’t see him guarding the Donovan Mitchell’s and Tyrese Haliburton’s of the world, either.
• Age: Karaban will be 24 shortly after Opening Night of his rookie season. Many teams stay away from these types of players because of the relentless chase of youth and upside.

The Knicks Fit

If James Dolan’s word is to be believed, and the Knicks will not be going into the second apron, there will immediately be a big hole in the Knicks’ bench, as Landry Shamet will likely go elsewhere after getting a deserving raise on his last two minimum contracts. Shamet’s ability to defend multiple positions and knock down threes will need to be replaced.

Could Karaban fill that role better than, say, Mo Diawara or Pacǒme Dadiet in-house? Maybe. I’d certainly trust Karaban’s jumper to translate, and he’s a significantly more willing shooter than the team’s internal options, even if he’s not able to create his own shot. There might be a bit of redundancy considering the team already has a pure catch-and-shoot offensive weapon in Deuce McBride, but Karaban can be a solid 10-15-minute per game guy for the regular season if needed.

His big-game experience is a big plus for me. There are already four Big East alums on the roster, three of whom have won a combined five national championships. Three of them (all but Mikal Bridges) were underdrafted based on their college production. Karaban would fit in nicely with a group of guys who entered the league as older underdogs who came from flat-out winners.

NBA Comparison

• Best-Case Comparison: Late career Peja Stojaković
• Median Outcome: Sam Hauser
• Low-End Outcome: Garrison Matthews

The Verdict

Do not consider at No. 24 or in any first-round trade back: The Knicks will have their fair share of options in the first round and should go for someone with better upside than Karaban with their first pick. Considering they might need to replace Mitchell Robinson, the earlier they draft a center, the better.

Consider at No. 31, make him a Knick in a trade back past No. 35: The right range for Karaban appears to be at the top of the second round. Depending on where the board is, he could be an option at No. 31, but we could also see Leon Rose utilize his famous trade back to get an additional pick. If the Knicks select in the 35-40 range, he’s a slam dunk.

Read all our draft profiles here.

Go Knicks!