New York Knicks: Pros and Cons of trading for No. 1 pick in 2020 NBA Draft

The Golden State Warriors would consider trading the top pick in the 2020 NBA Draft. Should the New York Knicks call?

The New York Knicks are in an unfamiliar position. Due in large part to the work of general manager Scott Perry and the refusal to trade draft picks by former team president Phil Jackson, New York has a vast number of resources at its disposal.

Armed with promising young players and a bevy of future draft picks, the Knicks could make noise as soon as the 2020-21 NBA season.

While the youth movement appears to be in full effect, there may be an option on the table that reroutes the path. It wouldn’t take the Knicks off of the rebuilding road, but instead, aspire to push the franchise closer to the finish line.

According to Monte Poole of NBC Sports, Golden State Warriors president of basketball operations Bob Myers would consider trading the top pick in the 2020 NBA Draft.

"“Yeah, we’re going to consider all that,” the Warriors president of basketball operations told NBC Sports Bay Area over the phone, before pausing for a moment. “Now, I don’t know if the headline is going to be that we’re trading our pick. So, be clear that I said ‘consider.’”"

This is especially intriguing when one considers that NBA Draft expert Chad Ford recently told Rejecting the Screen that the Knicks are going all-in on LaMelo Ball.

In other words: If the Warriors are willing to trade out of the top spot in the 2020 NBA Draft, the Knicks are likely to be one of the top teams calling.

Acknowledging that the NBA Draft Lottery still needs to play out, there’s certainly reason to be intrigued by this proposition. The No, 1 overall selection is coveted, even if the draft class is less inspiring than the vaunted group from 2019.

The question is: Should the New York Knicks actually trade for the No. 1 overall selection in the 2020 NBA Draft if the opportunity arises?

There’s a lot to unpack.

Pro of Knicks trading for 1st Pick: Options

On the Pro front, let’s start with the obvious: With the No. 1 pick, a franchise can select any prospect in an entire draft class. That’s a unique position to be in, even if a general manager doesn’t necessarily believe there’s a franchise player to be found.

If there’s even one player in the entire class that a team believes can help it reach the next level, having the No. 1 pick means a guaranteed ability to select said prospect.

That’s an attractive opportunity for a New York Knicks team that has up-and-coming talent, but lacks a true identity. Even if it fails to identify a perennial All-Star, selecting a player who can proudly don the orange and blue for the next 10 years would be a win.

Even if they bottom out as a starting-level player who perfectly complements RJ Barrett and Mitchell Robinson, that would be an absolute win for the Knicks.

It’s also possible that New York has its eye on a specific prospect. In that case, acquiring the No. 1 pick would mean guaranteeing that said player will still be on the board when it’s the Knicks’ turn to select a prospect—again, an invaluable opportunity.

There’s more that goes into this than merely having options, but the most obvious reason to covet the No. 1 pick may be the best one: Being able to select anyone in the entire class.

Con of Knicks trading for 1st Pick: Opportunity Cost

The Golden State Warriors have a phenomenal core four. Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, and Klay Thompson have already won three championships together, and Andrew Wiggins has all of the talents in the world for Golden State’s vaunted coaching staff to explore.

Throw in the likes of Damion Lee, Eric Paschall, and Jordan Poole, and—it would still take a monumental offer to acquire the No. 1 overall selection in the 2020 NBA Draft.

The New York Knicks currently possess the sixth-best odds of acquiring the No. 1 overall draft pick via the Lottery. If New York stays where it is, offering the No. 6 pick could be a decent way to start a conversation with Bob Myers and the Warriors.

It would take far more than saving money on a rookie-scale contract to persuade Myers to pull the trigger, however, and that’s a daunting truth.

Even if RJ Barrett and Mitchell Robinson are made untouchable, the Knicks would still have to part with valuable assets. That could mean future draft picks—and the Dallas Mavericks’ selections are only so appealing with Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis pushing the franchise to 40-27 in Year 1.

It’s a nice idea to consider, but the Knicks would need to do serious homework to ensure that they’d be drafting a player who’s worth trading significant assets away for.

Pro of Knicks trading for 1st Pick: A Potential Franchise Player

There’s no possible way to guarantee this would happen, but successfully utilizing the No. 1 overall selection often means finding a true franchise player. If nothing else, the odds are in favor of selecting a player who will become an All-Star.

Since 2000, the following No. 1 overall selections have become All-Stars, All-NBA honorees, or MVPs:

• Kenyon Martin
• Yao Ming
• LeBron James
• Dwight Howard
• Andrew Bogut
• Derrick Rose
• Blake Griffin
• John Wall
• Kyrie Irving
• Anthony Davis
• Karl-Anthony Towns
• Ben Simmons

The only two players on that list who made fewer than two All-Star or All-NBA teams were Andrew Bogut and Kenyon Martin. Bogut helped the Golden State Warriors win a championship in 2015 after being All-NBA in 2010 and leading the league in blocks per game in 2011.

Martin, meanwhile, played 15 years in the NBA and helped the New Jersey Nets make back-to-back NBA Finals appearances in 2001-02 and 2002-03.

That list doesn’t include the two most recent No. 1 overall selections: Productive big man Deandre Ayton and the potentially generational Zion Williamson.

There are busts to consider, as well as players whose stories have yet to be written. The reality of the No. 1 pick, however, is that the odds are in the favor of the selecting team to find a player who can be of immense value to its plans for a return to relevance.

Being that the New York Knicks already have RJ Barrett and Mitchell Robinson on the roster, a Bogut or Martin type of player could be the missing piece.

A prospect on any varying level from Simmons to James could single-handedly alter the path of the franchise.

Con of Knicks trading for 1st Pick: It’s A Confusingly Unique Class

The 2020 NBA Draft boasts the most confusing class of prospects in recent history. Due in large part to COVID-19, exposure to prospects has been limited, including the cancellation of the NCAA Tournament and the restrictions placed on travel that further limits in-person evaluations.

Compounded by the fact that this was already viewed as a relatively underwhelming draft class on the star front, the No. 1 pick may not be as valuable as it seems.

Acknowledging the previous two pros as holding true, it’s also possible that this could be a repeat of 2013. This isn’t to say that the No. 1 pick will be another Anthony Bennett, but instead that there may not be as many stars as general managers might hope to discover.

Keep in mind: Giannis Antetokounmpo and Rudy Gobert were post-lottery selections in 2013, and that was when scouts had the flexibility to travel to Europe and watch them in person.

Based on the state of the world and the perception of this class, it might be better for the New York Knicks to simply stay where they end up. The roster is already flush with young talent, and sacrificing future draft picks for a maybe in 2020 could mean losing out on the actual missing pieces down the line.

Throw in the fact that New York has the assets to trade for a star, and it might be worth holding on to the players and picks that would need to be traded for the No. 1 overall selection.

Pro of Knicks trading for 1st Pick: If The Knicks See A Star, It May Need To Happen

As previously noted, the New York Knicks are reportedly captivated by LaMelo Ball. Ball spent the 2019-20 season playing professionally in Australia, where he showcased a well-rounded skill set that includes the type of court vision that New York desperately needs.

Whether it’s Ball or someone else on the board, the reality is that finding a potential star may require acquiring the No. 1 overall selection in the 2020 NBA Draft.

It’s hard to envision a scenario in which the Golden State Warriors select Ball or even Anthony Edwards, as they may not fit the current makeup of the roster. Crazier things have happened in a positionless NBA, however, and New York is unlikely to be the only team interested in trading up.

As such, the pursuit of Ball, Edwards, or any other prospect could ultimately land the Knicks in a bidding war for the No. 1 pick—and if they pan out, they’d make a potential trade entirely worth it.

Ball is a 6’7″ point guard who has been commended for his passing ability, defensive upside, and overall potential as a player. Edwards is a potential three-level scorer who has worked tirelessly to address the criticisms of his game.

There are numerous prospects to consider, but pursing said players without the No. 1 pick would drastically decrease the odds of selecting them.

If the Golden State Warriors secure the No. 1 overall selection and make it available in trade talks, the New York Knicks will have to determine if the pros outweigh the cons.