Fans have huge reason to be thankful for Knicks-Clippers Marcus Morris Sr. trade

It’s been over three years since the New York Knicks traded Marcus Morris Sr. to the Los Angeles Clippers as part of a three-team deal. He didn’t spend a full season in NYC, but his departure has continued to pay off three years later.

The Knicks acquired Moe Harkless, Issuf Sanon, the Clippers’ 2020 first-round pick, the Clippers’ 2022 second-round pick (via DET), and swap rights with the Clippers’ 2021 first-round pick. Harkless appeared in only 12 games for New York while the Knicks sent the draft rights to Sanon to the Rockets in the Austin Rivers trade months later.

So, why should Knicks fans be thankful for Morris? Well, the 2020 first-round pick that LA sent in the deal turned into Immanuel Quickley. With the No. 25 pick, the Knicks selected the guard out of Kentucky.

How has that pick turned out for New York? Pretty dang good.

Knicks-Clippers Marcus Morris trade led to New York drafting Immanuel Quickley

In his third season in New York, Immanuel Quickley is having a career year. He’s averaging a career-high 13.4 points and is shooting a career-high 45% from the field. The 23-year-old could (and should) end up winning the NBA Sixth Man of the Year award this season.

He didn’t get a lot of playing time in his first two seasons, but he’s averaging a career-high 28 minutes per game in 2022-23. He’s already played in more games than he did as a rookie and he’ll likely surpass the 78 games that he played in 2021-22.

To show how much he has grown in the past few months, he’s on a 12-game streak of scoring in double-digits. There have been only three games in New York’s last 36 where he didn’t score double-digits. He gets it done on both ends of the floor as he has a team-high 115.2 defensive rating.

As for Marcus Morris, who became a free agent after the 2019-20 season, he re-signed with LA on a four-year, $64 million deal in November of 2020. Because New York’s front office knew that re-signing him wasn’t a priority, the Knicks got something in return for him before he walked for nothing. Thank goodness that they did, or else Immanuel Quickley would likely be calling LA home.

New York Knicks all-time draft bust starting 5

The history of the New York Knicks is littered with poor draft picks. Here is the all-time draft bust starting five, stuffed with frontcourt players.