The New York Knicks have a few financial matters to attend to. Unfortunately, based on recent reports, it doesn’t sound like they are being taken care of in a timely fashion. Miles McBride is one of a few Knicks players – the others being Karl-Anthony Towns, Josh Hart, and Tyler Kolek – eligible for an extension right now. However, it doesn’t sound like the Knicks are particularly close to a deal with McBride. Fred Katz of The Athletic reported that the two sides are nowhere near coming to an agreement.
McBride is in the final year of his contract. And if he enters next summer without having gotten an extension done, he will be an unrestricted free agent. The Knicks will lose all control over him on the market. So, if the Knicks don’t actually plan on getting a deal done, then they may have to at least consider trading him by the deadline.
Because losing McBride for nothing next summer would be a pretty tough pill to swallow. And even though I wrote up a piece not long ago noting how the Knicks could just keep him on board to help with the playoffs and then deal with the consequences of unrestricted free agency, with the depth they have on hand, checking the trade market could make more sense if the right deal arises.
Knicks should consider trading Miles McBride if they don't extend him
Based on the look of their roster, the Knicks don’t necessarily need McBride. But that’s also not a completely fair assessment, because we don’t know how the upcoming season will go.
McBride’s ball-handling and three-point shooting are important pieces of the puzzle. But the Knicks have some players who can help replace those things, rendering McBride less necessary.
Last year, the Knicks traded for Jose Alvarado. He gives the Knicks some additional guard depth, and he can handle the ball for stretches throughout the course of a game.
Then, there’s Landry Shamet. His three-point shooting has made him an integral part of the Knicks’ rotation for the last year, and he and Alvarado were rewarded with a new contract this summer.
That said, McBride is still important to the Knicks. He’s still a rotation piece. A guy who Mike Brown can trust every night. But if he wants too much money, then the Knicks may be better off letting him walk.
Or, in this case, trading him by the deadline. Because if New York’s plan is not to extend him and let him hit unrestricted free agency, then they might as well explore the trade market.
Keeping him on the roster to help them in the playoffs could be worth it, but if they already have solid depth at the guard spot, then trading him by midseason wouldn’t be a terrible idea.
Since negotiations don’t seem to be going too well for McBride and the Knicks, a trade by the deadline could certainly be in the cards. New York needs to at least consider it.
Add us as a preferred source on Google