The New York Knicks were linked to a few players before the Feb. 6 trade deadline but opted to make one minor move. They sent Jericho Sims to the Bucks as part of the Kyle Kuzma-Khris Middleton deal with the Wizards in exchange for Delon Wright. The front office explored trade options for Sims for weeks before settling on what they believed would be a good fit.
Some fans were disappointed that New York didn't acquire another frontcourt player. The Knicks decided to wait to see how Mitchell Robinson looks when he returns, which should be very soon. That doesn't mean they didn't explore their options before coming to that conclusion.
One of the players New York expressed interest in was Chris Boucher. HoopsHype's Michael Scotto reported that the Knicks, Nuggets, and Clippers were among the teams that reached out about the 32-year-old forward.
Boucher is in the final year of his current contract and will be an unrestricted free agent over the summer. The Raptors' decision to keep him on the roster wasn't the most surprising move before the deadline (the Brandon Ingram trade won that award), but it was still unexpected. However, not to Boucher. He knew he wasn't going anywhere.
Raptors forward Chris Boucher knew he wasn't going to be traded
Boucher told Raptors Republic's William Lou that it was the "most peaceful deadline" he had compared to other years:
“I was also talking with Bobby (Webster) and all of them, and I never thought I was going to be going away. The media says one thing, but really, the GM, and the people around here would have told me if something would have happened, and then I would have been a little bit more concerned."
Boucher has been with Toronto since 2018, making him the only player left from the 2019 title team's roster. He made it past the 2025 deadline even after his name was tossed around in rumors, but free agency could hold a new beginning for Boucher.
The Raptors will want to avoid the luxury tax at all costs, so if they want Boucher to stay, he'll have to take a pay cut. His role would continue to be a valuable veteran voice in a younger locker room whose number can be called upon in a game at a moment's notice.
Maybe New York is still monitoring Boucher as a possible free-agency option, or perhaps he'll stay in Toronto. Nobody thought he'd still be with the Raptors, so while it seems likely he'll go elsewhere over the summer, it's not guaranteed.