When the New York Knicks traded four unprotected first-rounders and a pick swap to the Brooklyn Nets for Mikal Bridges, I doubt they were thinking about how that move would hurt their chances to acquire Giannis Antetokounmpo in February 2026. To their credit, it's impossible to predict which superstars will become available two years down the line.
With that being said... It would be really nice to have those picks right now as the Knicks are (reportedly unsuccessfully) pursuing a Giannis Antetokounmpo trade. In fact, a package centered around KAT, Miles McBride, and four unprotected first-rounders is close to a competitive package. Toss in that pick swap, and suddenly the Knicks have some leverage. But alas!
Of course, it's easy to say this in retrospect, but the Knicks were widely questioned for the haul of picks they gave up for Bridges at the time of that trade, too. It's not like the trade was hailed as a stroke of genius from the Knicks front office when it happened; and now, a dearth of picks is actively hurting the Knicks' efforts at acquiring a top-tier superstar, which is usually what 5-first rounder packages are usually reserved for.
Knicks could use those first-round picks to trade for Giannis
I'll come clean. I am as pro-trading picks as anyone you will ever meet. My thought process is simple; picks aren't players, they're the idea of players. If a team is trying to win, then acquiring a player (who is guaranteed to produce) for picks (which are almost always more valuable as ideas than the players they turn into) is the best way to do it.
Plus, it's not like the Knicks just threw those picks into a trash compactor. Bridges has been pretty much the exact player the Knicks should have expected when they acquired him. He's not a volume offensive creator every night, but he's a very good 3-point shooter, an above-average defender, and the most reliable player in the league in terms of availability. That's a valuable player!
Is it a player who you shell out five first-round picks for? Probably not. The Knicks knew that, but thought Bridges was the guy who would tie everything together and vault the team to NBA title favorites. That hasn't exactly been the case; that truth, compounded with the fact that now a better player is available, makes the current situation sting a little bit more.
The Knicks shouldn't regret acquiring Mikal Bridges — if a very good player is available, I think it's pretty much always smart to acquire them. But the biggest knock on that deal was the exorbitant pick cache the Knicks gave up for him. Fans questioned whether those picks would come in handy down the line. Well, we're down the line, and those picks would have come in handy.