The Knicks trading down or out of the first round altogether was always a possibility. Clearly, they weren’t enthralled with the options at No. 11, and the whole league has been talking for days about how aggressively they were attempting to open up cap room. Yes, they used the 11th pick to get off Walker, but it wasn’t a straight salary dump. They acquired three future first-rounders in the process. And there’s a realistic chance all three convey.
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I wouldn’t be surprised if the Knicks reroute at least one of these picks as soon as this summer. They need to open up more cap room if they want to chase Brunson and could slap one of the firsts onto Noel to send him off without bringing any salary back, though it might be easier to deal Burks.
There are people in the league who believe they’re also stockpiling picks to use in a trade for a star, though I’m somewhat skeptical the ones the Knicks acquired Thursday are needle-moving in a megadeal. First-round picks are great, but they don’t necessarily get you All-NBA talent when they’re all likely to be outside the lottery.
Katz seems pretty upbeat about the Knicks' trade. I might have liked it if we kept all 3 and moved into a pure rebuilding direction, but we moved the one which was more likely to convey. It feels like a 9 million salary dump is not maximizing value, especially if we're aiming for just Brunson and need to trade more. I've heard a ton about how 2023 is a strong draft, and that has to be worth more.
They thought they were giving out tradeable contracts last offseason, the kinds they could piece together if they wanted to bring in a star. Instead, they can’t give them away. Yes, three first-rounders is dandy, but this all started because of regrettable signings.
Walker is on an expiring, $9 million salary, less than the midlevel exception, and it still took the No. 13 pick to deal him to Detroit. Teams haven’t been willing to take Noel without sweeteners, league sources have said, or Evan Fournier, who has two years and $37 million remaining on his deal. Many are wary of Julius Randle, whose four-year extension he signed last August and is worth at least $106 million, kicks in at the start of next season. Derrick Rose, meanwhile, has health questions and a $14.5 million 2022-23 salary, though I have no indication the Knicks are open to trading him.
I thought this was pretty self-explanatory, but some guys in this forum apparently disagree: Randle's value is really low now. Guess some of the anger is based on self-inflicted injuries created by the FO. From my end, I have to be candid and say that I liked many of their moves, but it feels like at this time, they're spending resources trying to fix their mistakes to double down on a bad plan.
Four months ago, the Knicks had an opportunity to open up space for this summer and passed on it, sources said. The team zeroed in on a three-way trade with the Lakers and Raptors that would have sent Burks, Noel and Cam Reddish out of town and would have brought back no long-term salary along with a draft pick, but the team chose not to do it. Had the Knicks done that deal, they would have entered the draft looking at about $25 million of room. They could have handled the Walker situation differently, or they could have traded him to free up even more space. Now, it may take trading additional draft picks to get $25 million below the cap.
Man, I would have traded away Cam in hindsight.
