Knicks may need Victor Wembanyama’s help to undo a costly offseason mistake

Pretty much everyone feels like it’s only a matter of time before the New York Knicks trade Guerschon Yabusele. The problem? His two-year contract, with a player option for next season, has devolved into a negative asset that’s tough to move. 

Enter Victor Wembanyama to save the day. Potentially.

During a recent appearance on the Knicks Film School podcast, SNY’s Ian Begley said he’s keeping an eye on the San Antonio Spurs in trade talks because Victor Wembanyama is “I believe, a fan of Yabusele’s from [their time together on France’s] national team.” The longtime insider then echoed these sentiments for SNY:

For anyone who thinks these connections don’t shape deals, may I point you to the Knicks’ acquisition of Mikal Bridges, who had ties to Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, and the since-traded Donte DiVincenzo during their Villanova days? 

Yes, that was different. Bridges was at the time highly coveted around the league, and seemingly filled the final perimeter void for New York. Yabusele won’t do the same for the Spurs unless he magically resumes playing like he did last season with the Philadelphia 76ers. 

Wembanyama also isn’t the type to demand San Antonio do anything, let alone acquire an end-of-bench player currently out of his incumbent team’s rotation. Still, their relationship wouldn’t be the sole motivation for the Spurs. It’s merely part of a larger equation.

Here’s why the Spurs would trade for Yabusele

New York needs to make a trade that potentially expands its rotation, but also gives it more financial flexibility to play around with later-season contracts. Moving Yabusele alone may require the inclusion of a second-round pick or one of the Knicks’ (scant few) youngsters to sweeten the pot. 

San Antonio is in position to capitalize if New York goes this route. Sending out two of Jordan McLaughlin, Lindy Waters III, and Bismack Biyombo could net the Spurs a second-round pick, and open up a roster spot all at once. It also saves the Knicks around $900,000. 

The two sides could also expand the deal to include Pacome Dadiet, yet another Frenchman. San Antonio wouldn’t carve out an extra roster spot if it takes back the 20-year-old, but it’d be getting a stab-in-the-dark flier on a wing, and more importantly, the $3.8 million it’d be saving New York could be worth additional compensation, in the form of an extra second-round pick or simply a better one.

Truthfully, the Spurs could be intrigued by a move like this one if Wemby had no ties to Yabusele (or Dadiet). But their relationship only helps. Teaming up with Wemby might even increase the likelihood that Yabusele emerges from his season-long funk.

Equally critical: No matter the motivation, San Antonio isn’t acquiring Yabu unless Wemby vouches for him. The Knicks have been canvassing the league for a while, and haven’t yet found a deal to extricate them from their offseason signing gone wrong. They clearly need every advantage they can get in sussing out a new home for Yabusele. 

And as luck would have it, they might just stumble into a 7’4”-sized one.