Go ahead and remove Keon Ellis from the list of the New York Knicks’ potential trade-deadline possibilities. The Cleveland Cavaliers swooped in first, acquiring him and Dennis Schroder as part of a three-team trade in exchange for De’Andre Hunter and a second-round pick, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
Pretty much every team under the sun has been linked to Ellis. This includes the Knicks, who joined a list that also featured the Minnesota Timberwolves, Indiana Pacers, Boston Celtics, and “many” others.
Ellis would have been a terrific fit as a 6’4” guard-wing hybrid who capably defends at the point-of-attack, and can knock down threes. The relief he could have offered Deuce McBride and Mikal Bridges at the less-glamorous end is perhaps the most attractive thing about him. Well that, and his $2.3 million salary rendered him eminently digestible for a Knicks squad facing all sorts of financial constraints.
The miss can be somewhat tough to stomach when looking at what the Sacramento Kings accepted in return. That Hunter contract has one year and $24.9 million left on it, and is officially underwater with the way he’s shooting this season. Plus, the Kings actually had to give up a second-round pick. Chances are the Knicks would have furnished them with multiple seconds to land Ellis.
Upon further reflection, though, New York probably didn’t stand a chance.
The Kings wanted something the Knicks couldn’t offer
As Sam Amick of The Athletic notes, the Kings wanted a protected first-round pick for Ellis. They were never going to get it from the Knicks, who don’t have one to trade.
More critically, they weren’t going to get a first-rounder, period. Everyone knew they were looking to move Ellis, and the 26-year-old is entering unrestricted free agency this summer. His next team, Cleveland, is either renting him, or tasked with giving him a substantial raise. Role players getting dealt under these circumstances don’t fetch first-rounders.
In lieu of that compensation, Sacramento prioritized getting off Schroder’s contract, and adding a properly sized wing to the rotation. New York couldn’t offer that, either.
Bridges, OG Anunoby, and Josh Hart are the only rotation-level wings on the roster. Pacome Dadiet wasn’t going to move the needle for Sacramento, and surrendering Mohamed Diawara is likely something New York would have refused to do.
Schroder’s salary is the bigger sticking point. The Knicks could have replaced reserve-wing equity with two or three second-rounders. Squeezing Schroder’s $14.1 million salary into the cap sheet, however, was out of the question. It would have required shipping out Mitchell Robinson, or Hart. While New York needs a backup ball-handler, it shouldn’t be giving up a top-seven rotation player to get him.
Missing out on Ellis remains a bummer, but it’s far from a caught-sleeping moment. Landry Shamet does a lot of what he does, and provides slightly more size. The Knicks may also be at a standstill until the Giannis Antetokounmpo situation gets hashed out.
More than anything, though, this is a case of warring agendas. New York wanted to surrender seconds for Ellis alone. Sacramento wanted to lop off more money. The two sides just weren’t a good match.