They currently own the No. 24 pick and could potentially also purchase a second-rounder, too.

On Tuesday, they looked at several more options, including South Dakota State point guard Nate Wolters, and Louisville big man Gorgui Dieng.

The 6-foot-4 Wolters is considered a level below the four elite point guards in the draft — Trey Burke of Michigan, C.J. McCollum of Lehigh, Michael Carter-Williams of Syracuse and Shane Larkin of Miami — and will likely still be on the board in the second round.

Burke, McCollum, Carter-Williams and Larkin all figure to be long gone when the Knicks pick, while Wolters is projected as the No. 39 overall pick by DraftExpress.com.

“I really like the city and it’d be a dream come true to play in the Garden,” Wolters said of potentially playing for the Knicks. “It’s one of the best arenas in all of basketball. I’ve never been there, but it’d be cool to play here 41 games a year.

“Definitely, this would be a great fit. I know Jason Kidd just retired and they got Raymond Felton at point guard, but that seems like a need of theirs. I definitely feel I can add to it and hopefully I have the opportunity.”

Wolters was forced to be a scorer at South Dakota State, averaging 22.3 points, 5.8 assists and 5.6 rebounds last season, but said he will be more of a facilitator in the NBA.

“I think I’m more of a facilitator than a scorer, really,” Wolters said. “Just out of necessity it was for me to score in college, so I had to put up a lot of shots, but I think my natural position is just a passing point guard who makes players around me better.”

Questions remain about Wolters’ foot speed and defensive abilities, but he says he proved that he can play defense in college and will do so at the next level, too.

“I think I showed that in the season a little bit when we played the top guys, like Trey Burke [of Michigan], I was able to keep him in front,” said Wolters, who helped limit the National Player of the Year to six points on 2-of-12 shooting in the NCAA Tournament. “That’s something I’ll continue to work on. Defense is more just an effort thing and toughness, so I’m going to bring that.”

TAYLOR ON TAP FOR THURSDAY

Tony Taylor, a 6-foot-1 Sleepy Hollow, N.Y., native and former George Washington guard, will work out Thursday for the Knicks.

Taylor is at the Orlando Magic free agent mini-camp Wednesday. He will play for the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Orlando summer league and for the Miami Heat in the Vegas summer league, his agent, B.J. Bass, told SNY.tv.

He spent last year with Tulsa of the NBA D-League, averaging 7.0 points and 3.2 assists in 50 games. In five playoff games, he averaged 11.2 points and 5.4 assists.

“He’s right there,” Bass said. “He wasn’t really on the radar coming out of school. Now, he’s right in the mix. I think that Orlando is very serious about him, OKC is serious about him, the Heat are serious about him. I think some in the Knicks organization like him.”

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Lavin landed Dwayne Polee of California in his first spring, and then added California guys Amir Garrett and Norvel Pelle in 2011. (Polee later transferred and Pelle never made it to campus after being declared academically ineligible. On Tuesday, he withdrew from the NBA Draft.)

Now Lavin is making a run at Stephen Zimmerman, the 7-foot 2015 big man from Bishop Gorman in Las Vegas.

During a phone conversation Tuesday with Zimmerman and his stepmom, Lori Stevens, Lavin offered the big guy a scholarship.

“We’re offering you a scholarship and want you to know you will always have a home here,” Lavin told Zimmerman.

Ohio State and Texas also offered, joining a parade of big-time schools that includes Kentucky, UCLA, Arizona, Kansas and more.

“Just got an offer from The Ohio State University! The blessings keep coming!” Stephen Tweeted.

The competition for Zimmerman will be fierce but Lori said she had followed Lavin since his time at UCLA and that he had watched Steven play as a freshman.

“I watched Coach Lavin when he coaches at UCLA so I’m not a stranger to him,” she told SNY.tv. “I thought he was great then. He saw Stephen as a freshman, so it’s quite an honor. And he sent a really nice today. It was pictures of their uniforms and said, ‘Zimmerman would be unstoppable’ with his name on the back. It’s a good feeling knowing that his hard work is paying off.”

Zimmerman is lined up to play in New York at the Big Strick Classic Aug. 10, so he will get a taste of life in the Big Apple that weekend.

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“Greg will return when he is 100 percent healthy,” Georgetown coach John Thompson III said in a statement. “I feel for Greg because he’s worked extremely hard to prepare for the coming season, on and off the court. I’m confident this is just another setback that in the end will make him even stronger. At this point, there is no specific timetable for his return.”

The news was previously reported by CasualHoya.com and ESPN.com.

Whittington averaged 12.1 points and 7.0 rebounds last season, but was ruled academically ineligible Jan. 12. He was expected to return to the team this season and was a major reason why SNY ranked Georgetown No. 1 in our Preseason Big East rankings.

Without Whittington, Georgetown now falls to No. 3 behind No. 1 Marquette and No. 2 St. John’s.

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Harry Giles

Giles injured the knee during his second game with the USA U16 team at the FIBA Americas Championship in Uruguay, and Beck quoted him as saying he will come back “way better” than before.

The 6-foot-9, 210-pound Giles out of Wesleyan (N.C.) Christian was unable to play as the U16s won the gold medal in Uruguay.

“I’m just cheering them on,” he said. “I’m still part of this team, even though I’m injured. So I just cheered them on like I was on the court with them.”

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The matchup will pit two storied programs that have won a total of 15 national championships, 11 for UCLA and four for Duke.

The game will allow New Jersey forward Kyle Anderson to play close to home for a second straight year. Last season, UCLA played in the Legends Classic in Brooklyn.

In all, UCLA will play non-conference games against four teams that finished the 2012-13 regular season with an RPI of better than 80, Duke (1), Missouri (42), Alabama (64) and Weber State (78). 

“All of us in the program have been working tirelessly this spring and summer to prepare for the upcoming season,” said first-year UCLA head doach Steve Alford. “We are excited to get in front of our fans and represent UCLA.”

Here are some other top events in Brooklyn, Manhattan and Connecticut in the non-conference, courtesy CBSSports.com:

2K SPORTS CLASSIC

• Location: Madison Square Garden, New York
• Dates: Nov. 21-22
• Teams: Indiana, UConn, Washington, Boston College

COACHES VS. CANCER

• Location: Barclays Center, Brooklyn
• Dates: Nov. 22-23
• Teams: Michigan State, Oklahoma, Seton Hall, Virginia Tech

HALL OF FAME TIP-OFF

• Location: Mohegan Sun, Uncasville, Conn.
• Dates: Nov. 23-24
• Teams: Louisville, North Carolina, Richmond, Fairfield, Belmont, Holy Cross, Hofstra, Hartford

LEGENDS CLASSIC

• Location: Barclays Center, Brooklyn
• Dates: Nov. 25-26
• Teams: Pittsburgh, Stanford, Houston, Texas Tech

PRESEASON NIT

• Location: Madison Square Garden, New York
• Dates: Nov. 27, 29
• Teams: Duke, Arizona, Alabama, Rutgers

JIMMY V CLASSIC

• Location: Madison Square Garden, New York
• Dates: Dec. 17
• Teams: Pittsburgh vs. Cincinnati (7 p.m.); Florida vs. Memphis (9 p.m.)

GOTHAM CLASSIC

• Location: Madison Square Garden, New York
• Dates: Dec. 21
• Teams: Notre Dame vs. Ohio State

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GREENBURGH, N.Y. — Gorgui Dieng

Pitino knows a thing or two about the machinations of the NBA Draft, having coached the Knicks and the Celtics and famously missing out on Tim Duncan in 1997.

“He just said I can go anywhere from 12 to 20,” the 6-foot-11 Dieng said of Pitino following his Knicks’ workout Tuesday.

“I just need to be myself and play the way that he tells me, which is compete and just bring a lot of energy and effort. He said that’s all people want to see – energy and effort. So when i step on the court it’s like second nature to me. I can be tired when I step on the court but once I get going I just keep going. Actually, I play better against competition than against myself.”

DraftExpress.com currently has Dieng going No. 20 to the Chicago Bulls in the June 27 NBA Draft, meaning he wouldn’t still be around when the Knicks pick at 24.

He still has upcoming workouts with Dallas, Atlanta and the Nets.

The Knicks are in the market both for youth and size in the frontcourt and for a backup point guard as well.

Dieng, a native of Senegal who averaged 9.8 points, 9.4 rebounds and 2.5 blocks for the NCAA champion Cardinals, believes he could help the Knicks right away.

“I played for a coach that was very demanding,” he said of Pitino. “I came from a winning program. All I care is winning, nothing less, just winning, whatever it takes. I want to see a coach again that drives me the way that Coach ‘P’ drives me. Just be honest with you. Like I said I came from a winning program and it’s all about winning to me so I think wherever I go, I won’t have a problem fitting in.”

Dieng has already enjoyed success at Madison Square Garden, having won back-to-back Big East Tournaments at Madison Square Garden.

The Knicks could use his height and defensive prowess with the retirements of Rasheed Wallace and Kurt Thomas and Amar’e Stoudemire’s injury situation. They need a younger backup for Tyson Chandler.

“When it comes to draft picks I don’t really care,” Dieng said. “I just want to go to a team — I’m looking for longevity. A team where I’m going to go and play for a long time….So to me I don’t really care where I go. I just want to be a first-round pick and I will take care of the rest.”

As for Pitino, Dieng said he thought it was funny that his former coach got a tattoo on his back following Louisville’s win.

“After we won I said you’re going to get a tattoo and he said OK,” Dieng said. “I couldn’t believe it. But it’s kind of funny, 60 years old and he just got a tattoo, especially when you’re Coach Pitino, always blaming his players like don’t get a tattoo, don’t do that. And he has one now?”

Dieng was asked if he will get a Knicks tattoo should New York take him.

“Never,” he said. “I will never have a tattoo or wear earrings or something like that. That’s not me. I just want to be a role model and that’s what I’m all about. Not getting tattoo. I’m not saying it’s bad but I don’t see myself doing that.”

GREENBURGH, N.Y. — Gorgui Dieng

“I think they’re going to have a better team this year,” the 6-foot-11 Dieng said Tuesday following his Knicks workout.

“It’s tough to believe but I think they’re going to have a better team. They have a lot of guards and the biggest guy on the team is 6-8. So they’re going to do the things that they are known (for), which is like press, press more, press more because they have a lot of guards. Last year we had a lot of bigs but this year we have more guards. We have four, five guys coming in.”

Louisville lost Dieng — a projected first-round pick — and point guard Peyton Siva — a projected second-rounder. But they return virtually everyone else from the team that dispatched Michigan in the NCAA title game.

Rick Pitino’s club brings in point guard Chris Jones, the National Junior College Player of the Year, as well as point guard Terry Rozier, shooting guard Anton Gill and center Akoy Agau.

Louisville and arch-rival Kentucky have won the last two NCAA titles, and could vie for a third next spring.

The teams will also play a highly anticipated game Dec. 28 at Rupp Arena.

“Kentucky always have a chance to win it,” Dieng said of the Wildcats and their historic incoming recruiting class, highlighted by Julius Randle and Andrew and Aaron Harrison.

“They always have the best players and always, I don’t want to say best players, they always have the chance but are they going to be a team? We don’t know. You can have a lot of pieces but it’s tough to have a team.”

By contrast, Dieng said Louisville, which doesn’t have a single one-and-done talent, is more of a team.

“We always have a team. we always have a team,” he said. “Thats what Coach ‘P’ is all about – team. He doesn’t care who you are . You can be the best player but if you do something wrong, he’s going to sit you down. If you’re body fat is over nine percent, you won’t play.”

A Port Chester, N.Y., native, Henriquez worked out for Knicks’ brass less than 10 miles from where he grew up.

“It’s a great feeling, just knowing that I had the opportunity given to me,” the 7-footer said following a closed workout. “For them to fly me all the way out from L.A., I know that was pretty expensive on short notice so it’s a blessing.”

The 6-foot-11 Henriquez has been training on the West Coast with Norvel Pelle and Josiah Turner. The trio are all represented by agent Greg Nunn, although the 6-10 Pelle — a former St. John’s and Iona commit — withdrew from the NBA Draft, according to DraftExpress.com.

Henriquez averaged just 5.0 points and 5.0 rebounds last season at Kansas State and is not projected to go drafted, but he welcomed the chance to impress.

“Just knowing that I’m given the opportunity to come work out again or be able to play on their summer league team, whatever chance that’s given to me I’m going to take it,” he said.

Henriquez, who grew up on Long Island, has also worked out for the Lakers and the Warriors, and heads to Charlotte on Wednesday.

If Henriquez goes undrafted, he said he hopes to make a summer league roster.

“I’m just staying positive and making sure I work out with a lot of energy,” he said, “and always give your all because you never know what can happen.”

**The Knicks — who own the No. 24 pick in the June 27 Draft — on Tuesday will work out a group that includes former Louisville big man Gorgui Dieng as well as Nate Wolters, Brandon Davies, Justin Hawkins, Jamal Olasewere and Angelo Sharpless.

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Friends, roommates and possible future college teammates Jahlil Okafor of Chicago Whitney Young and Justise Winslow of Houston St. John’s made the final cut, as did acrobatic incoming Arizona forward Aaron Gordon of San Jose (Calif.) Archbishop Mitty and Washington-bound point guard Nigel Williams-Goss of Findlay Prep.

Also selected for the USA U19 World Championship Team were Michael Frazier (University of Florida/Tampa, Fla.); Jerami Grant (Syracuse University/Bowie, Md.); Montrezl Harrell (University of Louisville/Tarboro, N.C.);  Elfrid Payton(University of Louisiana at Lafayette); Marcus Smart (Oklahoma State University/Flower Mound, Texas); Jarnell Stokes (University of Tennessee/Memphis, Tenn.); Rasheed Sulaimon (Duke University/Houston, Texas); and Mike Tobey (University of Virginia/Monroe, N.Y.).The last four guys cut were Ryan Arcidiacono (Villanova University/Langhorne, Pa.); Damyean Dotson (University of Oregon/Houston, Texas); Marcus Georges-Hunt (Georgia Tech/College Park, Ga.); and James Robinson (University of Pittsburgh/Mitchellville, Md.);.

The team will compete in the FIBA U19 World Championships June 27-July 7 in Prague, Czech Republic.

“Getting down to 12 is the real hard part because in a lot of respects we easy could have kept 14-15,” said USA head coach Billy Donovan, who led the 2012 USA U18 Team to a 5-0 record, a FIBA Americas U18 gold medal finish and a qualifying berth for the 2013 FIBA U19 World Championship.

“There were some tough decisions, difficult decisions, but I think we feel overall that we have selected an athletic and versatile team. Our style of play will be an aggressive, up-tempo, running, pressing style. From an execution standpoint we’ve got to get better there, a lot of the other teams over there have been together for quite some time and that’s probably a strength of their teams, so we felt that we have to rely on some athleticism,” Donovan continued.

“These kids being here since Friday, obviously there’s been a physical toll on them, but I don’t think you can underestimate the mental toll of these kids trying so hard to make the team. Here it is today and they have gone through Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday, four pretty difficult days against really difficult competition, and the uncertainty of ‘am I playing well enough’; ‘am I going to make the team or not make the team’; that stress, that pressure, I think that adds to their fatigue. So I think getting that behind us now and going forward we can get our guys focused on being the best team. I think the focus up to this point of time by them has been ‘make the team’, ‘make the team’, ‘make the team’, and we’ve got to now move it towards trying to win.”

The 7-foot Bishop Gorman (LV) High School star picked up a Kentucky offer Monday morning and has been courted by Duke, St. John’s, UCLA, Arizona and Ohio State, among others.

“Just got offered a scholarship to play basketball from the University of Kentucky!!,” Zimmerman tweeted.

During a phone interview Monday night, Lori Stevens, Stephen’s mom, told SNY.tv that her son spoke Sunday night with Kentucky assistant Orlando Antigua, and then head coach John Calipari called Lori Monday morning and “extended the offer to Steven through me.”

“That’s such an honor,” she added. “Kentucky with their history and Coach Cal, it feels like Stephen’s worked so hard to get to where he is and keeps working. It just kind of validates for him that his hard work is paying off and people are seeing it.”

Zimmerman had already been offered by more than a dozen schools, including Kansas, UCLA and UConn and Arizona, but his stock got a shot in the arm with a strong showing over the weekend at the NBPA Top 100 Camp in Virginia.

The Kentucky news triggered a shout out from former Bishop Gorman star Shabazz Muhammad, a projected lottery pick in the June 27 NBA Draft.

“S/o to my little bro @BIGG_ZIMM doing big things and getting a offer from Kentucky today!!!! #dreamvisin/gorman fam,” he Tweeted.

Later Monday, Duke assistant Steve Wojciechowski called Zimmerman again after about three weeks of contact.

“Wojo told him that they wanted to watch him a little bit more and they would be following him in July,” Lori said. “Coach K wanted to see him because he hadn’t seen him in a while, and see how he was doing. And once he had a chance to watch him again, that they would probably offer.”

Lori said St. John’s head coach Steve Lavin was in Los Angeles and they were planning to speak with him later Monday night.

“We’re recently interested to see what they have to say,” Lori said. “I watched Coach Lavin when he coaches at UCLA so I’m not a stranger to him. I thought he was great then. He saw Stephen as a freshman, so it’s quite an honor. And he sent a really nice today. It was pictures of their uniforms and said, ‘Zimmerman would be unstoppable’ with his name on the back. It’s a good feeling knowing that his hard work is paying off.”

Louisville also reached out recently, “a minute after Kentucky did,” Lori said.

“We’re supposed to have a call with Coach [Rick] Pitino this week and we want to get to know them as well,” she said.

UCLA reached out Monday night and Lori said she hopes to speak with head coach Steve Alford.

Arizona head coach Sean Miller spoke with Stephen Sunday night and Ohio State assistant Jeff Boals had also been “pretty persistent” in reaching out, Lori said.

She said Indiana, Notre Dame and Michigan had also reached out and she needed to get back with them.

Zimmerman, the No. 2 rated player in the Class of 2015 behind California forward Ivan Rabb according to Rivals, helped lead the Gaels to a 29-3 record and the program’s second straight Nevada 4A title as a sophomore last season.

In the state final, a 69-43 rout of Centennial, Zimmerman scored 18 points to go along with 14 rebounds and 10 blocked shots.

Lori said her son would play the Adidas tournaments in July and then possibly take some visits in the fall.

“I thought it was overwhelming before, but it’s a whole new level now,” Lori said with a laugh.

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