Trades and Transactions 2025 IV

[Jalen Bluntson]

I don't think he's at that part of his career anymore...he's +30 years old...I think he wants to win...but thats speculation at that is what his agent can clearly articulate to Leon and Co...if he wants guaranteed minutes and a chance for a big role he probably doesn't fit...if he wants a chance to win and stay on the east coast where he has played a majority of his career he can play a role for us.

I'm on the fence with thia because of the unknown in Kolek. It's a Thibs related problem but, I don't wanna dive too deep into that part of it.

The idea of Smart in a limited mentor sorta role makes sense. If Kolek can defend better and score more he is going to be a great option off the the bench. Inexplicably, he wasn't given much opportunity with the bigs club so, had he spent time with Westchester we would know more. He only played like 4-5 games there. Fail.

I would love a more development centric approach but, we are kinda in win now mode. How much time can we spare to develop players who should have gotten more attention last year? Will he make an instant leap this summer? Hard to tell.

I would like a trusted vet to make a finals run with. One who is ok in a limited role but, can help if we need to rely on him for whatever reason. A player who wants to help us win more than help himself get another contract. Is Smart that guy?

Brunson/Kolek/Smart
Deuce/Clarkson/Pac
Mikal/Hart
OG/Yabu/Diawara
KAT/Mitch/Huk

That's a solid rotation with young depth/potential in the pipeline to work with. I think Simmons would be a more versatile bench player who doesn't want the spotlight on him at all. He doesn't fit the trusted vet mentor role though. He's a head case we could always bench if necessary.

Whoever would take the role described is who I want. Give Kolek room to grow and a goal of possibly being the backup full time. Have a player who can help him or replace him if needed. Tall order for such short pockets.

The thing with Kolek is he isn't really a developmental prospect. He is already 24 and we know what he is. He is a pure playmaker who looks to setup teammates first and score second. He is never going to be a top tier defender but he will play hard and has good defensive IQ to make up for some of his physical shortcomings. What he needed to develop was his body to be more NBA ready and get his 3 point shot more consistent. He puts the work in and I would like to see him get a real shot at some point this season.

My concern with him is his readiness to help win a championship. As developed as you think he is, he may need a full year to get to that level the following season. Even as a bench player. He didn't take the world by storm when he filled in with Brunson out. He showed flashes but. Delon Wright was the better player. We are in win now mode.

I am all for giving him shot though. I would still like that insurance off the bench. Maybe Deuce/Clarkson is the insurance? Who do we get for the final vet mini?

[spree2kawhi]

I mean, that’s a lot of smoke. You can only hope for Giannis to come here, no matter the cost. Such a class act, such a beast on the court.

[Polk377]

I'm on the fence with thia because of the unknown in Kolek. It's a Thibs related problem but, I don't wanna dive too deep into that part of it.

The idea of Smart in a limited mentor sorta role makes sense. If Kolek can defend better and score more he is going to be a great option off the the bench. Inexplicably, he wasn't given much opportunity with the bigs club so, had he spent time with Westchester we would know more. He only played like 4-5 games there. Fail.

I would love a more development centric approach but, we are kinda in win now mode. How much time can we spare to develop players who should have gotten more attention last year? Will he make an instant leap this summer? Hard to tell.

I would like a trusted vet to make a finals run with. One who is ok in a limited role but, can help if we need to rely on him for whatever reason. A player who wants to help us win more than help himself get another contract. Is Smart that guy?

Brunson/Kolek/Smart
Deuce/Clarkson/Pac
Mikal/Hart
OG/Yabu/Diawara
KAT/Mitch/Huk

That's a solid rotation with young depth/potential in the pipeline to work with. I think Simmons would be a more versatile bench player who doesn't want the spotlight on him at all. He doesn't fit the trusted vet mentor role though. He's a head case we could always bench if necessary.

Whoever would take the role described is who I want. Give Kolek room to grow and a goal of possibly being the backup full time. Have a player who can help him or replace him if needed. Tall order for such short pockets.

The thing with Kolek is he isn't really a developmental prospect. He is already 24 and we know what he is. He is a pure playmaker who looks to setup teammates first and score second. He is never going to be a top tier defender but he will play hard and has good defensive IQ to make up for some of his physical shortcomings. What he needed to develop was his body to be more NBA ready and get his 3 point shot more consistent. He puts the work in and I would like to see him get a real shot at some point this season.

My concern with him is his readiness to help win a championship. As developed as you think he is, he may need a full year to get to that level the following season. Even as a bench player. He didn't take the world by storm when he filled in with Brunson out. He showed flashes but. Delon Wright was the better player. We are in win now mode.

I am all for giving him shot though. I would still like that insurance off the bench. Maybe Deuce/Clarkson is the insurance? Who do we get for the final vet mini?

It is a long season. Thibs should have been using these guys throught the year to see what we had in them. I'm not saying he should be guaranteed playoffs minutes but get him in early and let's see who can carve out a role and who fits in chemistry wise.

Honestly why rush it? We don't necessarily need someone right now. We can always hold out and use it later in the season if we need to.

[Jalen Bluntson]

The thing with Kolek is he isn't really a developmental prospect. He is already 24 and we know what he is. He is a pure playmaker who looks to setup teammates first and score second. He is never going to be a top tier defender but he will play hard and has good defensive IQ to make up for some of his physical shortcomings. What he needed to develop was his body to be more NBA ready and get his 3 point shot more consistent. He puts the work in and I would like to see him get a real shot at some point this season.

My concern with him is his readiness to help win a championship. As developed as you think he is, he may need a full year to get to that level the following season. Even as a bench player. He didn't take the world by storm when he filled in with Brunson out. He showed flashes but. Delon Wright was the better player. We are in win now mode.

I am all for giving him shot though. I would still like that insurance off the bench. Maybe Deuce/Clarkson is the insurance? Who do we get for the final vet mini?

It is a long season. Thibs should have been using these guys throught the year to see what we had in them. I'm not saying he should be guaranteed playoffs minutes but get him in early and let's see who can carve out a role and who fits in chemistry wise.

Honestly why rush it? We don't necessarily need someone right now. We can always hold out and use it later in the season if we need to.

I'm not rushing anything. We have until like two weeks into the season before we have to fill the spot from what I know. A decision will be made before than. We will have an open roster spot all year that we can't afford to fill as well. We need to get to 14 early. I assume Diawara will be the other player. Nnaji doesn't make much sense right now.

I mentioned that Thibs should have used him or Westchester could have used him all year. Neither happened.

It's not an end of the world situation but, other than Summer league and the coaching staff, what else is there to talk about? Especially in this thread. The only holes in the bench right now are backup wing and backup PG. We can only chose one vet mini. Diawara is a PF at 6'9.

Oh, waiting on Mikal/Mitch extensions are the only other thing to discuss.

[robillionaire]

smart if/when healthy is a great player . I’d be tempted to put him in the starting lineup if we got him

[Jalen Bluntson]

smart if/when healthy is a great player . I’d be tempted to put him in the starting lineup if we got him

[mpharris36]

smart if/when healthy is a great player . I’d be tempted to put him in the starting lineup if we got him

He's been a worse shooter than Josh Hart so I don't think you want that.

They would just leave him wide open and live with Smart shooting the Knicks in/out of games instead of Brunson/KAT/Bridges/OG ect

its why Deuce is the guy, still really good POA defense but will make people pay if they leave him wide open more times than not.

[Polk377]

My concern with him is his readiness to help win a championship. As developed as you think he is, he may need a full year to get to that level the following season. Even as a bench player. He didn't take the world by storm when he filled in with Brunson out. He showed flashes but. Delon Wright was the better player. We are in win now mode.

I am all for giving him shot though. I would still like that insurance off the bench. Maybe Deuce/Clarkson is the insurance? Who do we get for the final vet mini?

It is a long season. Thibs should have been using these guys throught the year to see what we had in them. I'm not saying he should be guaranteed playoffs minutes but get him in early and let's see who can carve out a role and who fits in chemistry wise.

Honestly why rush it? We don't necessarily need someone right now. We can always hold out and use it later in the season if we need to.

I'm not rushing anything. We have until like two weeks into the season before we have to fill the spot from what I know. A decision will be made before than. We will have an open roster spot all year that we can't afford to fill as well. We need to get to 14 early. I assume Diawara will be the other player. Nnaji doesn't make much sense right now.

I mentioned that Thibs should have used him or Westchester could have used him all year. Neither happened.

It's not an end of the world situation but, other than Summer league and the coaching staff, what else is there to talk about? Especially in this thread. The only holes in the bench right now are backup wing and backup PG. We can only chose one vet mini. Diawara is a PF at 6'9.

Oh, waiting on Mikal/Mitch extensions are the only other thing to discuss.

I'm also not opposed to bringing in an older vet like PJ Tucker as more of a mentor and locker room guy to start the season on the vet min to fill out the roster and give the kids a chance early. We can always evaluate the roster at the deadline and make changes.

Diawara would definitely be the other spot since they could use the 2nd round exception.

Nnaji would be a guy I sign to a 2 way deal as insurance for Mitch and Hukporti. Brings the same kind of defensive energy as both and we know health is always a concern for us at C. I like his potential and would like him to be around and at least at Westchester.

I get it. We need something to talk about to get through the summer. Harder to get worked up over a good team than in the past unless you are my guy Buzzardman

[TheGreenArrow]

Read on Twitter

?s=46&t=W09F6FrMDfp5_y1gKYgF1g

[VirginiaKnickFan]

I mean, that’s a lot of smoke. You can only hope for Giannis to come here, no matter the cost. Such a class act, such a beast on the court.

Smoke?

[Jalen Bluntson]

Read on Twitter

?s=46&t=W09F6FrMDfp5_y1gKYgF1g

Click bait to get us to pay for the post. Take a rumor, link it to Twitter, link to a pay wall.

BE BETTER GREENIE!!!!!!!!!!

From the pic though. Bondy is suggesting we look at Smart/Brogdon/CP3 and two other players mentions in the article that I won't pay to read.

[Jalen Bluntson]

I mean, that’s a lot of smoke. You can only hope for Giannis to come here, no matter the cost. Such a class act, such a beast on the court.

Smoke?

[TheGreenArrow]

Read on Twitter

?s=46&t=W09F6FrMDfp5_y1gKYgF1g

[stuporman]

The media muppets can milk anything for months just to get the clicks.... did you hear what he said? We'll see!

[R-DAWG]

I think we are at the point of the off-season where the Knicks are going to go into the season with only 12 guaranteed contracts. I assume they will use the first 14 days to create flexibility like last season, and round out the roster with 2 non-guaranteed 2nd rd pick exceptions (i believe they can do this with the wing they drafted plus the draft and stash guy they got in the KAT trade).

This would give the Knicks maximum flexibility to round out the roster with a buyout guy or 2 towards the end of the season.

Obviously, if you can land a guy like Al Horford, or even bring back Precious, you change course. But I think this is how it will play out.

[Knicksfan1992]

smart if/when healthy is a great player . I’d be tempted to put him in the starting lineup if we got him

He's been a worse shooter than Josh Hart so I don't think you want that.

They would just leave him wide open and live with Smart shooting the Knicks in/out of games instead of Brunson/KAT/Bridges/OG ect

its why Deuce is the guy, still really good POA defense but will make people pay if they leave him wide open more times than not.

I will say even though he's a worse shooter, he's a more willing shooter than Josh.

Part of the reason defenses feel comfortable leaving Josh is because they know he can be gunshy. He's not shoot first. They have time to recover.

Marcus is much more willing to let it fly. Inherently that effects the defense a bit more even if he isn't as good once he actually shoots it.

That being said Deuce is the choice if you don't start Mitch IMO.

[nykballa2k4]

I'm on the fence with thia because of the unknown in Kolek. It's a Thibs related problem but, I don't wanna dive too deep into that part of it.

The idea of Smart in a limited mentor sorta role makes sense. If Kolek can defend better and score more he is going to be a great option off the the bench. Inexplicably, he wasn't given much opportunity with the bigs club so, had he spent time with Westchester we would know more. He only played like 4-5 games there. Fail.

I would love a more development centric approach but, we are kinda in win now mode. How much time can we spare to develop players who should have gotten more attention last year? Will he make an instant leap this summer? Hard to tell.

I would like a trusted vet to make a finals run with. One who is ok in a limited role but, can help if we need to rely on him for whatever reason. A player who wants to help us win more than help himself get another contract. Is Smart that guy?

Brunson/Kolek/Smart
Deuce/Clarkson/Pac
Mikal/Hart
OG/Yabu/Diawara
KAT/Mitch/Huk

That's a solid rotation with young depth/potential in the pipeline to work with. I think Simmons would be a more versatile bench player who doesn't want the spotlight on him at all. He doesn't fit the trusted vet mentor role though. He's a head case we could always bench if necessary.

Whoever would take the role described is who I want. Give Kolek room to grow and a goal of possibly being the backup full time. Have a player who can help him or replace him if needed. Tall order for such short pockets.

The thing with Kolek is he isn't really a developmental prospect. He is already 24 and we know what he is. He is a pure playmaker who looks to setup teammates first and score second. He is never going to be a top tier defender but he will play hard and has good defensive IQ to make up for some of his physical shortcomings. What he needed to develop was his body to be more NBA ready and get his 3 point shot more consistent. He puts the work in and I would like to see him get a real shot at some point this season.

My concern with him is his readiness to help win a championship. As developed as you think he is, he may need a full year to get to that level the following season. Even as a bench player. He didn't take the world by storm when he filled in with Brunson out. He showed flashes but. Delon Wright was the better player. We are in win now mode.

I am all for giving him shot though. I would still like that insurance off the bench. Maybe Deuce/Clarkson is the insurance? Who do we get for the final vet mini?

I think that Kolek is plug and play. Unfortunately he has not been able to see NBA action. We barely practiced because we killed our starters in games and he did all he could do in summer league and G-League.

He needs to get actual game action and/or real practice time against pro-level players.

[Jalen Bluntson]

The thing with Kolek is he isn't really a developmental prospect. He is already 24 and we know what he is. He is a pure playmaker who looks to setup teammates first and score second. He is never going to be a top tier defender but he will play hard and has good defensive IQ to make up for some of his physical shortcomings. What he needed to develop was his body to be more NBA ready and get his 3 point shot more consistent. He puts the work in and I would like to see him get a real shot at some point this season.

My concern with him is his readiness to help win a championship. As developed as you think he is, he may need a full year to get to that level the following season. Even as a bench player. He didn't take the world by storm when he filled in with Brunson out. He showed flashes but. Delon Wright was the better player. We are in win now mode.

I am all for giving him shot though. I would still like that insurance off the bench. Maybe Deuce/Clarkson is the insurance? Who do we get for the final vet mini?

I think that Kolek is plug and play. Unfortunately he has not been able to see NBA action. We barely practiced because we killed our starters in games and he did all he could do in summer league and G-League.

He needs to get actual game action and/or real practice time against pro-level players.

I agree. Should have played more somewhere. We just stuck him to the bench. I agree with Polk that he needs to muscle up as well. Part of the discussion is who do we sign with the vet mini. We have plenty of bigs and SGs. We have two PGs and Deuce who is basically an under sized SG. Clarkson can play some point I suppose but, not a fan of the idea. So getting a limited role PG who Kolek can take the job from might not be a bad idea.

[Polk377]

My concern with him is his readiness to help win a championship. As developed as you think he is, he may need a full year to get to that level the following season. Even as a bench player. He didn't take the world by storm when he filled in with Brunson out. He showed flashes but. Delon Wright was the better player. We are in win now mode.

I am all for giving him shot though. I would still like that insurance off the bench. Maybe Deuce/Clarkson is the insurance? Who do we get for the final vet mini?

I think that Kolek is plug and play. Unfortunately he has not been able to see NBA action. We barely practiced because we killed our starters in games and he did all he could do in summer league and G-League.

He needs to get actual game action and/or real practice time against pro-level players.

I agree. Should have played more somewhere. We just stuck him to the bench. I agree with Polk that he needs to muscle up as well. Part of the discussion is who do we sign with the vet mini. We have plenty of bigs and SGs. We have two PGs and Deuce who is basically an under sized SG. Clarkson can play some point I suppose but, not a fan of the idea. So getting a limited role PG who Kolek can take the job from might not be a bad idea.

I agree we don't really need a guard. JB, Deuce, Clarkson, Bridges, Kolek, McCullar and Hart are all technically guards. We need a wing/PF for depth.

If it is for potential rotation minutes my picks are Boucher, Lyles, McDermott or Bol Bol. Vets for mentorship and locker room would be Markieff Morris, Crowder, PJ Tucker or Horford.

[nykballa2k4]

I think that Kolek is plug and play. Unfortunately he has not been able to see NBA action. We barely practiced because we killed our starters in games and he did all he could do in summer league and G-League.

He needs to get actual game action and/or real practice time against pro-level players.

I agree. Should have played more somewhere. We just stuck him to the bench. I agree with Polk that he needs to muscle up as well. Part of the discussion is who do we sign with the vet mini. We have plenty of bigs and SGs. We have two PGs and Deuce who is basically an under sized SG. Clarkson can play some point I suppose but, not a fan of the idea. So getting a limited role PG who Kolek can take the job from might not be a bad idea.

I agree we don't really need a guard. JB, Deuce, Clarkson, Bridges, Kolek, McCullar and Hart are all technically guards. We need a wing/PF for depth.

If it is for potential rotation minutes my picks are Boucher, Lyles, McDermott or Bol Bol. Vets for mentorship and locker room would be Markieff Morris, Crowder, PJ Tucker or Horford.

IMO we keep that spot open and see what needs develop during the season. I am of the opinion that we need another rim protector if we can grab one. Moses Brown who should be called Teflon because he can't stick anywhere is a logical one. Pacers last year got Thomas Bryant off the scrap heap and one could argue they don't make the finals without him.