Kon Knueppel: Milwaukee's Best
Knueppel is an incredible shooter who plays the game the right way in every facet. Is that enough to make him a lottery pick?
Take his height out of the equation, and Kon Knueppel looks like your typical Midwestern kid. Put it back in the equation, and he is now an NBA lottery-level prospect as a freshman on a stacked Duke squad that made the Final Four. Coming out of Wisconsin, Knueppel was the Nike EYBL regular season leading scorer at 22.5 PPG, and when you look into his background, you can see why. Starting in 6th grade, Knueppel, along with his parents, Kon and Chari, who were both all-time leading scorers at their respective schools (Kon at Wisconsin Lutheran and Chari at UW Green-Bay), and his four younger brothers, would go to a small gymnasium and shoot hundreds of shots each night. He would compete in a 5-on-5 basketball league started by his father, playing against grown men when he was in middle school. So, when I say Kon was practically born into and bred by the sport, I mean that literally. Here’s a look at how those experiences molded Knueppel as a player when it comes to his strengths and skills.
Basic Stats (2024-2025): 30.5 MPG, 14.4 PPG, 2.7 APG, 4.0 RPG, 1.0 SPG, 0.2 BPG, 1.4 TO, 47.9% FG
PROS
Incredibly smooth shooting mechanics
Ball comes out of his hand quickly (with room to grow) and has a simple and compact motion that is repeatable to a high degree. Excellent shooting touch to boot
Raises his ceiling at the pro level as it makes him a dependable scorer, even on off nights, and still makes him a threat.
Has great shooting touch, seems to be natural. Makes and misses are consistent in where they hit.
Great positional size and weight
Makes him a very effective off-ball screener (which Duke uses him in a fair amount)
Gives him the opportunity to be aggressive with bigs down low in terms of rebounding (1 OReb/Game, 3 DReb/Game)
Also makes him a solid finisher and a surprisingly good rim defender (despite a small sample)
Plays the game as simply and as smartly as possible
Plays off two feet whenever he can, doesn’t do too much dribbling to get a bucket (doesn’t waste dribbles)
Gets downhill incredibly efficiently, uses his screens and handoffs to get an edge and turn the corner effectively.
Doesn’t let himself get sped up, forces defenses to adjust to him and can get to his spots whenever he wants.
Changes pace well when driving, allows him to put his defender in jail and generate open, uncontested looks at the rim.
Superb playmaker that has potential at the next level to be that secondary guy
Highly effective (81% PPP Rating) in the PNR when considering his role in the offense as a secondary ball-handler
Directs people on and off-ball on offense, showing a command and an understanding of a pro-level offense that Duke has
Can improvise effectively if any of the plays designed for him go wrong.
Effective off-ball mover
Duke ran a lot of plays designed for him to get an open look for three, knows when to get moving, and has an almost innate ability to get open.
Great cutter, can make the correct read on when the defense is overplaying him on the perimeter and turn it into an open look on the backdoor.
Gritty and determined: shows a lot of desire and determination to guard, get physical, and dive on the floor and make hustle plays.
CONS
Frequently late on defensive closeouts (often times the result of below)
Loses his assignment quite frequently on the defensive end
Occurs when switching in the PNR and when assigning high or low man, often leaves Kon and someone else guarding one guy while Kon scrambles and to find his assignment, leading to wide open looks.
Not bad but not great footspeed; could stand to improve a little bit
Lacks lateral quickness, making his 1 on 1 defensive possessions high percentage for the other team.
Doesn’t initiate contact as much as you would like
With his size, I would like to see him initiate more contact when driving or defending in the paint. Is a REALLY good free throw shooter (91%), but he doesn’t go to the line much as he should be at that clip (33.9% FTA Rate, 3.3 FTA/Game). If he initiates contact more, that will change.
Not an insane athlete, primarily a below-the-rim finisher and not the quickest.
Not going to catch a body or anything, and that isn’t a knock or anything. He plays effectively without it, as he understands positioning and utilizes his weight well to be a solid finisher (81st %tile PPS Rating on layups).
Final Take: Smart, simple player with good shooting mechanics with great positional size, but frequently has issues in off-ball defense and needs to display higher percentages from the three
Draft Projection: Mid-Lottery
Player Comparison: Ball-handling Kyle Korver; Can shoot lights out and can move without the ball. While Kyle is a better shooter, Kon is a better playmaker and has a wider frame. Both have high basketball intelligence.