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3 offseason Kemba Walker trades the Knicks should consider

By Brad Dressler

Jan 18, 2022; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks guard Kemba Walker (8) reacts during the first quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 18, 2022; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks guard Kemba Walker (8) reacts during the first quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /
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Portland Trail Blazers, Damian Lillard
Damian Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers. (Photo by Justin Ford/Getty Images) – New York Knicks /

The big fish

Yeah…so…I know I was beating the Damian Lillard drum pretty loud all of last season and it never happened. In fact, it never even got close to happening. Lillard stayed in Portland but things are different now. The Trail Blazers stunk while he was healthy this season and stunk even more once he went down with an injury.

Shortly after the six-time All-Star was shut down for the season, the front office decided to make some puzzling trades. Such as ones that made you really wonder if this is it…this is when Lillard will actually get traded.

They’ve spent the better part of the last decade trying to build a team around Lillard and have never been able to put enough talent around him for Portland to make a serious splash in the playoffs. So, they traded away his longtime backcourt-mate in CJ McCollum as well as other ‘win now’ pieces in exchange for younger talent.

It also seems as if the front office really likes what they have in 22-year-old Anfernee Simons and that they want to see what a team built around him could accomplish. Trading McCollum to just replace him with Simons next year is silly. Lillard might very well be gone…so why not to the Knicks?

Losing Immanuel Quickley hurts, we know this. However, think about it. This trade would allow New York to play both Reddish and Grimes in more prominent roles immediately.

It would also allow for the Knicks to move on from several of the bigger contracts on the team all at once while allowing the flexibility of building around a Big Three (Randle, Barrett, and Lillard).

The best part is, the Knicks wouldn’t be limited to just this move. They could work out a trade involving Noel if they don’t see him as a part of their future. They could also work out a sign-and-trade for Mitchell Robinson or just not bring him back altogether.

The team would keep the majority of its current young core all while bringing in an elite talent like Lillard.

With how well Julius Randle played last year and how well Barrett has been performing thus far in 2022, having both of them play off arguably one of the top 10 players in the league could elevate New York to a height that it hasn’t seen in over a decade.

As far as Walker, Portland would likely just cut him and let him sign with the team of his choosing as it’ll be the final year of his current contract. While this trade may be unlikely, using him as a salary filler in a deal seems like the most likely of circumstances.

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