New York Knicks rookie RJ Barrett was well-received by the Big Apple crowd after he got the seal of approval from the team's front office and the proverbial nod from a city that was expecting to land the coveted No. 1 selection in the draft last month.

The 6-foot-7 wing was quick to show his affection for the city and its people, a gesture that will surely endear them to a crowd of Knicks faithful that have long wanted a chance at a star-caliber player.

“New Yorkers, I'm here. I love you. Let's try to get back to that championship way,” Barrett said late Thursday, according to SNY's Ian Begley.

Barrett met some of the organization's iconic faces, including superfan Spike Lee and Hall of Famer Walt Frazier, both welcoming the Duke product to their city.

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The Knicks did their due diligence working out players even as the hours before the draft counted down, able to have them at their disposal since the draft ceremony took place in nearby Brooklyn. Yet none of the prospects impressed the scouting department more than Barrett, an agile and versatile guard/forward combo that has translatable skills to the NBA level.

“When he came in, he kinda won our building over,” said general manager Scott Perry. “When we bring guys in, we allow them to spend time with not only our front office staff, [but our] coaching staff, medical staff. It became apparent he was going to be a perfect fit from a culture standpoint. [He] just reaffirmed what we seen done in the collegiate season that he has a really good chance to be a great player at the NBA level. Made us really comfortable at No. 3.”

The hope is that the Knicks are able to bring him up cleanly through his first season, so that Barrett could show more than glimpses of becoming a star in the league.