Eight is the Second Magic Number

Knicks Land Eighth Pick in 2009 NBA Draft

In nuclear physics - the field of physics that studies the building blocks and interaction of atomic nuclei - the number 8 is considered the second magic number. Contradicting the doctrine of De La Soul, the first magic number is 2 as opposed to 3. A number is considered magical if it denotes an amount of nucleons (either protons or neutrons) that are arranged into complete shells within the atomic nucleus. As of 2007, the numbers most widely considered magical were 2, 8, 20, 28, 50, 82 and 126.

Somewhere in the wilds of Secaucus, N.J., in a room dubbed the "NBA Entertainment Studio," it was determined through the bouncing of ping pong balls that the New York Knicks will select eighth in the 2009 NBA draft. This is the slot in the draft order that the Knicks were most likely to get. Mathematically. Given that they had the eighth-worst record in the NBA last season. And, since math and physics are like cousins, I think, then it is possible that there is something positive (not in an electrical charge sense, obviously) about having such a magical spot in the order. Perhaps it will work out.

ESPN.com's Chad Ford has the Knicks selecting Davidson combo guard Stephen Curry, even though he ranks UCLA point guard Jrue Holiday as the eighth best player available. All the talk about town for months has been about Curry. Now is when everything gets interesting.