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3 Franchise-changing trade targets Knicks should have their eyes on

By Chris Gallagher

Oct 30, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson (1) keeps the ball out of reach of Los Angeles Clippers forward Nicolas Batum (33) in the second half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 30, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson (1) keeps the ball out of reach of Los Angeles Clippers forward Nicolas Batum (33) in the second half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports /
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New York Knicks, New Orleans Pelicans, Zion Williamson
Zion Williamson, New Orleans Pelicans. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) – New York Knicks /

Zion Williamson

Yes, I know the New Orleans Pelicans are in a great position, so I’m not saying that the Knicks are going to trade for Zion Williamson this season because of course, they are not. The truth is, however, Zion clearly has wanted to go to the Knicks since he was a Duke Blue Devil.

Imagine you’re the best player on the most exciting team in college basketball, where almost every play you make is a highlight, and you are quickly becoming a household name. Now imagine when people say your first name, they instantly think of you. Lastly, imagine everyone is telling you that you will play for the most marketed team in the NBA in the media capital of the world for a fanbase that is STARVING for a superstar. That is what Zion Williamson dealt with every day of his life in college.

Williamson dealt with all of this just for his roommate RJ Barrett to become the Knicks’ face of the franchise. Williamson and Barrett even said before the draft that one day they want to play on the same NBA team.

I could go into every connection Zion has with the Knicks, but that dead horse has been beaten. You can literally search “Zion Williamson Knicks,” and you would have hours of material to go over.

To save everyone time, I’ll just abridge everything on Williamson very quickly: Zion wanted the Knicks to draft him, he and RJ Barrett are very close friends who were roommates at Duke, and he said MSG was his favorite place to play before lazily saying “after New Orleans, of course” to cover himself, Zion is a CAA client, the Knicks have RJ and Cam Reddish (two of Duke’s Big 3 in 2019), and Zion is also good friends with Immanuel Quickley.

Zion has no reason to leave the Pelicans. David Griffin has done an incredible job with the team. New Orleans has a very exciting roster, and it would take the team blowing up for Zion to request a trade. And even then, it is not definite that he would end up a Knick, just look at the Donovan Mitchell saga.

The Knicks probably would not be able to get Williamson until he is a free agent in 2028, but Leon Rose should definitely keep an eye on the CAA client, who has so many connections to the Knicks it just sort of feels like destiny.

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