Early returns on the Guerschon Yabusele trade seem to paint the New York Knicks as the biggest winners, as Jose Alvarado's recent play (who the club was able to acquire as a result of the forward's departure) has made the deadline exchange look like a no-brainer.
However, SNY's Ian Begley is waiting to see how the postseason shakes out for these Knickerbockers before celebrating Leon Rose and company for the exchange, for Yabusele's Windy City breakout may suggest New York was ultimately at fault for the failed partnership.
Following Sunday's hard-fought, 105-99 win over the Chicago Bulls, the Insider posted a message on X (formerly Twitter) noting that the organization will "be judged based on what happens in playoffs," both from an overall season success standpoint as well as when it comes to their decision to offload the Frenchman.
"Yabusele never got extended minutes under Brown. His high in first two months of season was 15 minutes. Brown clearly wasn't a Yabusele guy. Knicks traded him to Chicago at deadline and acquired Jose Alvarado. If Knicks make NBA Finals with this group, no one will look back and question decisions around Yabusele. But if Knicks fall short of expectations, all of the Yabusele decisions will be scrutinized," Begley wrote.
NBA Insider hints Knicks may be at fault for Guerschon Yabusele failure
Upon putting pen to paper on a two-year, $12 million deal with the team this past July, initial reactions seemed to lean toward the narrative that New York came away with one of the biggest steals in free agency by signing Yabusele.
Considering he was fresh off a career-best campaign where he dropped 11.0 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.1 assists on 50.1 percent shooting from the floor and 38.0 percent shooting from deep with the Philadelphia 76ers, snatching him up with the MLE looked to be an absolute bargain.
However, as Begley noted, throughout his near-four months of action with the Knicks, Yabusele clearly struggled to find his footing within coach Mike Brown's rotation, wrapping up his tenure in the Big Apple having logged just 8.9 minutes a night, mere averages of 2.7 points and 2.1 boards, and three straight DNPs leading into the February 5 cut-off.
Along the way, the consensus among fans and pundits seemed to be that the 30-year-old was the most deserving of blame for falling short of preseason expectations. Of course, since arriving in Chicago, some, such as Begley, are now doubting that his struggles were really his own fault.
Though perhaps a small sample size of only seven games, Yabusele has looked like a completely different player while donning the red, black, and white threads, as he's posting solid averages of 10.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.3 assists on an incredibly efficient 43.2 percent shooting from deep.
Just recently, in his revenge game against the Knicks, he wrapped his near-30 minutes of play with an impressive stat line of 11 points and 13 rebounds on 50.0 percent shooting both from the field and beyond the arc.
Again, his ouster having a direct impact on New York's ability to strike a trade with NOLA for Alvarado certainly suggests that moving on from him when they did was well worth it.
However, seeing how well he's playing now with Chicago, it's hard not to wonder: A, if Rose sold way too low on his services, and B, if there was anything coach Brown could/ should have done differently to get this kind of production out of him.
Though critics of the Yabu deal may currently be dormant, should the Knicks fall short of a Finals berth, Begley is of the belief that their voices could grow exponentially loud.