With the Knicks’ mediocre start to the season, trade speculation has begun to fly around certain members of the team. While personally, I would like to see the front office make some trades to improve the team, there are only certain ones I’d be willing to accept.
There are certain players on the team that the front office should not move on from, but for the right package, I feel that anyone on this Knicks team is tradeable.
An article from Yahoo Sports’ David Vertsberger went over five potential trade packages for both Immanuel Quickley and Derrick Rose. While I am not the biggest fan of moving on from Quickley, it seems as if it may be time for Rose to go.
Pass or pursue on 5 Knicks trades surrounding Derrick Rose and Immanuel Quickley
Trade #1: Derrick Rose for Patrick Beverley and a protected first-round pick
This is an interesting trade. While I don’t think the Lakers would accept this, if the Knicks were offered it, they’d likely accept it in a heartbeat. Normally, this may get turned down, but Derrick Rose has not been playing very well this season, and the Knicks must capitalize on his value ASAP.
While Patrick Beverley has been playing some putrid basketball offensively, he would certainly help the Knicks’ defensive woes. In addition to this, Los Angeles’ pick could be extremely valuable in the future.
Vertsberger did not specify what year the pick was or the protection it had, but we all know how bad the Lakers will likely be once LeBron James retires and Anthony Davis eventually moves on. The protection will hurt the value of this pick, but regardless, the Knicks could always swing the pick in another potential trade to bring in even more help.
Rose is without a doubt the better player than Beverley this season even with his poor play, however, the defensive help Beverly would bring would be valuable.
I really don’t see the Lakers accepting this deal though, as not only did they decline a deal surrounding Russell Westbrook and two picks for Buddy Hield and Myles Turner, but they honestly don’t need Rose.
Would Rose be an upgrade over Beverley? Absolutely. However, Rose has not been playing particularly well and there is no saying when, or if, he will turn things around.
In this trade, the Knicks would be receiving a potentially valuable pick and an expiring contract. It would be sad to see Rose go, but with how stacked New York’s guard rotation is, they need to loosen up on potential rotation players. I can easily see Beverley sitting out until he is either traded or bought out.
Verdict: Pursue
Trade #2: Immanuel Quickley and Evan Fournier for Harrison Barnes and a future first-round pick
As a big Harrison Barnes fan, I love this trade for the Knicks. While there is absolutely no way the Kings would accept this trade, if the Knicks were offered it they should accept it in a heartbeat. It would be tough to lose Quickley, who has found his role as a playmaker and defender on this team, but if Rose stays, he could fill the role as a playmaker.
Barnes is a very talented 3&D wing with a well-rounded offensive game. While his threes have not been hitting as well as he’d like them to this season, he has been a great three-point shooter almost his entire career so I’m sure he’ll start hitting them soon enough.
While Barnes running the three may not be the most ideal scenario, he is certainly talented enough to get it done at a high level. This move would also move Reddish to the two off the bench, helping Rose’s defensive liabilities.
Barnes would not only improve the Knicks’ horrid three-point shooting, but he would also bring some very solid defense off the bench, two things this squad desperately needs.
I see almost no way in which the Kings would ever accept this offer though. Not only do they have plenty of backcourt depth, but considering that they are looking to make a playoff push, I doubt they trade away a key veteran for two inconsistent guards
Quite literally the only downside of this deal would be that the Knicks would have to rely upon major improvements from Rose. In addition to this, Barnes is on an expiring contract, so the Knicks must hope they can re-sign him. New York would also be moving on from Evan Fournier, who has one of the worst contracts in the NBA.
While that may scare Knicks fans away, it is worth noting that the Knicks only have Quickley under contract for one more year after this season, so it may be worth signing a veteran like Barnes unless Quickley makes a leap offensively.
Verdict: Pursue
Trade #3: Derrick Rose for Danny Green, salary filler, and a future first-round pick
Honestly, I don’t like this trade for either side. Not only do the Grizzlies have one of the better backup PGs in the league in Tyus Jones, but why would the Knicks trade a rotational player for someone who likely won’t get any minutes at all?
The pick is nice, but with how young and talented the Grizzlies are, it would likely be in the mid-to-late twenties.
Rose has clearly not been that great this season, but I still think he’ll be better than Danny Green. While the Knicks need three-point shooting, I would much rather make a move for a player who has at least seen the court this season and isn’t 35 years old.
Vertsberger did bring up the possibility of swapping Green for Dillon Brooks in this trade. However, I definitely don’t see the Grizzlies trading a key player for a struggling 34-year-old point guard when, again, they already have Jones.
I wouldn’t mind Brooks on the Knicks despite his inconsistencies as he is still a good defender and has moments of looking excellent on offense.
At the end of the day, this trade would not work out well for either team, making it an easy pass from me.
Verdict: Pass
Trade #4: Immanuel Quickley and Evan Fournier for Bojan Bogdanovic and a first-round pick
Similar to the Harrison Barnes trade, I would love to have a player like Bojan Bogdanovic on the Knicks, however, not for Immanuel Quickley. Again, New York would have to move on from another member of the team in order to give Bogdanovic proper minutes.
While in this situation the Knicks would move on from Quickley and keep Rose, it would make the rotation very weird. In the year 2022-23, running Bogdanovic at the three is not ideal, and since Obi Toppin and Julius Randle both run the four, this would make things a little odd in New York’s rotation.
Let’s say that the Knicks pull this off, or the Barnes deal off, they would likely have to run Cam Reddish at the two off the bench and either Bogdanovic or Barnes at the three. While Barnes is a much better fit at the position, Bogdanovic should not see extensive minutes at that spot due to his lack of perimeter defense.
Before the start of the season, I proposed a trade that would have sent Julius Randle to the Jazz for Bogdanovic. This is a trade that would make more sense, as not only would Bogdanovic get to play his natural position, but there would be no issues in the rotation.
Despite Vertsberger saying that Detroit would be throwing an unprotected future first-round pick into this deal, I highly doubt that this would be the case, as the team is still a year or two away from contention.
Not only do I doubt the Pistons’ willingness to move on from a key veteran like Bogdanovic, but to move on from a player as valuable as Quickley to put a player in a position he shouldn’t be playing just isn’t wise.
All-in-all this is just an unrealistic trade for both sides. Bogdanovic would be nice, but only if he is playing the proper position and is traded for the correct pieces.
Verdict: Pass
Trade #5: Immanuel Quickley for Corey Kispert and a first-round pick
This is probably the only trade I’m passing simply because of the player in return. Obviously, guys like Bogdanovic and Barnes are both much better than Quickley. However, the positional issues/lack of defense that comes with those deals would make it hard to say yes, especially in the case of Bogdanovic.
With this deal, the Knicks would be getting an elite three-point shooter in Corey Kispert and a first-round pick. The Knicks need three-point shooting, but there are other players they can make a move on.
The defense and playmaking Quickley provides, let alone his moments of excellent offense, makes it very difficult to want to move on from him. New York has players like Rose, Fournier, and heck, maybe even Randle that could be traded much easier.
With how poor Rose has played this season, the Knicks need the versatility Quickley provides and should prioritize keeping him unless there is a deal in which they are clear winners, such as the Barnes trade. There are simply better options to trade away other than the 23-year-old.
Quickley has his struggles offensively, hence why I would honestly consider trading him away, as the Knicks need more consistency all around. However, the trades Vertsberger proposed made it very difficult to say yes.
While the Knicks would be getting the better player in almost all of these trades, they would have to make other trades in order to straighten out the rotation. That is why they should look to move on from players in positions of need.
For once, the Knicks do not have a point guard problem, meaning they need to focus on other positional gaps. Brunson and Quickley do the job of playing the point just fine, it is other players that have not been picking up the slack.
Say Vertsberger had put the Barnes and Bogdanovic trades for Randle instead of Quickley, it would be much easier to say yes. Randle has been solid offensively this season, but his occasional poor shot selection, horrid defense, and seemingly poor leadership make it much easier to want to move on from him.
If the Knicks were to pull some of these trades off, they would need to have another move on deck and ready to happen. Hence why I passed on so many of these trades, the Knicks would be getting the better player, however, these trades alone would make the rotation very difficult to work with.
Verdict: Pass
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