Would you want the NY Knicks to bring in Russell Westbrook?
New York does this for a few reasons.
Firstly, there have been rumors that they want to consolidate their picks and move up in this year’s draft.
This accomplishes just that.
Secondly, this year’s free agency class isn’t the strongest.
While of course they can go out and grab a premier point guard like Kyle Lowry or trade for say Malcolm Brogdon, Russell Westbrook is arguably better than any other option that exists for the Knicks.
Aside from trading for Damian Lillard, he’s the best available solution to fix the Knicks’ point guard concerns for at least the next year or two.
By no means do I think that Westbrook is a negative asset and that he would require a pick attached to him to move his contract.
But he’s set to make $44 million next season and $47 million the following if he were to stick with his player option, which in all likelihood he will.
It would be tough for most teams to absorb his contract, except for the Knicks who are expected to have well over $50 million in cap space depending on what direction they go with a few of their pending free agents.
The spacing would be atrocious as Russ is a sub-31% shooter from long range for his career but he does everything else Coach Tom Thibodeau asks of his point guards and then some.
Russ is coming off a season where he averaged a triple-double, finishing the year off with 22.2 points, a league-leading 11.7 assists, and 11.5 rebounds.
If the Knicks found an upgrade at the 2-spot that could shoot lights out from deep, the Knicks would be cooking with gas next year and could potentially match their playoff seeding from last year.
Last but not least, the Knicks still keep the 32nd pick for this year which is a huge plus because there’s a ton of talent in this draft and they’re bound to find someone who can contribute in the near future at that spot.