NY Knicks: 3 Centers the team should trade for at Thursday’s Deadline
By James Ryder
Should the NY Knicks trade for Mike Muscala?
Mike Muscala wouldn’t be my first choice among the three on my list from a perspective of overall skillset, but he is without a doubt the best shooter of the three, pun not intended.
He is definitely nice with it.
Mike Muscala now has 69 3-point makes on the season.
— Nick Crain (@CrainNBA) February 5, 2022
That’s the second-highest total of his career and his highest in a Thunder uniform.
Not only is his 42.9% shooting from behind the arc fantastic for a center, but it’s also so good that Muscala is 7th in the entire NBA for 3-point percentage.
And he isn’t taking those shots in moderation either.
Muscala is taking 3.8 such attempts per game. For reference, Quentin Grimes is shooting 39% on 3.9 3PA per game.
So if you love seeing Grimes pouring it in from deep, just imagine if the Knicks had a player who’s even more efficient while being 5 inches taller.
I said Muscala isn’t my favorite overall since he leaves much to be desired outside of his shooting.
He averages just 7.8 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per 36 minutes.
But, if he played the 13.8 minutes he is with the Oklahoma City Thunder instead as a New York Knick, then those skills he’s lacking wouldn’t be very detrimental.
Muscala has a club option that the Knicks would likely decline and make him a 2022 free agent, so the second-round pick it should take to acquire him could be worth the limited trial.