Shams: KAT to the Knicks

[Scizzup]

Not enough shooting in your lineup, yes og Mikal and even Kat can hit the 3, but not really snipers

Hasn't KAT been labeled the best big man shooter ever? Isn't OG near the top in corner threes? McBride is a good shooter too and will play more with DDV gone, and he's a good defender too.

There are risks of course, no roster is perfect. But it's refreshing to see a team really go all in

If the Knicks don’t have enough shooting with this lineup then I don’t know how any team outside of maybe BOS has “enough” shooting. All of Brunson, Bridges, OG and Towns shoot around 5 3pa and all are over 38%. They don’t have an elite movement guy but they have 4 guys who need to be guarded at all times from 3.

with Boston its not just their raw shooting. They have 4 ball handlers in their starting 5 that is going to lead to way more quality shot creation and 3s especially paired with a spacing 5. The only team in that tier is OKC.

Knicks should be fine with their shooting but their starting lineup will be very dependent on Jalen Brunson dribbling. He is not the best passer so the quality of the teams 3s will be worse.

[Wise80]

I get why they did it. They needed another guy who could play the 5. I'm just not sure if Kat is the guy you want to go to war with.

Against most teams, I guess you can hide Kat on one of the weaker offensive players (the bonus of having OG's versatility and Bridges). And they get another guy who can get his own points.

[Brinbe]

lol y'all do realize that the Wolves did eliminate the Nuggets, right? And KAT was a key part of it?

Watch on YouTube

Watch on YouTube

sometimes our perceptions of who these guys are is stuck an old unreality.

[HumbleRen]

lol y'all do realize that the Wolves did eliminate the Nuggets, right? And KAT was a key part of it?

Watch on YouTube

Watch on YouTube

sometimes our perceptions of who these guys are is stuck an old unreality.

Did a better job of defending Jokic than AD did.

Kat is good man, overpaid for sure but he’s legitimately very good.

[DreamTeam09]

Robinson
Kat
OG
Bridges
Brunson

Like this for the Knicks

I personally think this team is better than Boston if healthy. Brunson is more of an alpha than either Brown or Tatum.

Not enough shooting in your lineup, yes og Mikal and even Kat can hit the 3, but not really snipers

What?! lol

KAT (40%) is a better shooter than Donte (37%) and can spot just as well if not better with the added height…not to mention how can you possibly say there’s not enough shooting. They have arguably the best shooting starting lineup in the league lol find me one better

Brunson - 40%
Bridges - 38%
OG - 38%
Towns - 40%

Donte - 8.7 3pa/game
Julius - 5.3 3pa/game
14 3pa on 37%

Towns - 5.3 3pa/game
OG - 4.5 3pa/game
Bridges - 7.2 3pa/game on 37.2%.
17 3PA on 38-39%

The 2 former Knicks almost matched the 3 new Knicks in volume.
Donte's movement n gravity n volume is severely being underrated here.

Boston would have a better 3pt shooting lineup
Philly can shoot with them

[SaveTheHens]

Happy for the Knicks, was rooting for them in the playoffs last year & with Hartenstein gone was let down by their bigman situation. But this trade is beautiful; get rid of Randle (did great without him in the playoffs, no need to experiment putting him back in) & found a beefy big thats a great offensive option. Donte was probably underrated on the Knicks, great efg% at the 15-17 points he was putting up, but easily worth the price to get bigman depth & move off Randle. Just dont run your guys into the ground Thibs but will be a fun team to watch.

[DG88]

I think people forget that Mitchell Robinson will be their 5 man. KAT will hold the fort there until Robinson's return. After that they will have the interior D along with the perimeter D to lock down teams. They did this trade to beat the Celtics.

I think thats a fair argument, but are you saying you bump out a Hart for MRob in terms of mins?? Wouldnt that also hurt the transition defense, speed on the perimeter by either KAT/MRob vs 4/5 out trad offense of this era?? Also its not just rim protection, KAT struggles as a PnR Roller defender too.

I also question who really is the second USG guy, is Bridges going to soak up alot of on ball possessions? KAT? McBride? Edit: And how much is that compounded in the POs when Brunson isnt as effective.

Should be interesting to watch for sure.

It will be interesting to see since this will be KAT second stint with Thibs. The team has options of going big with Robinson/KAT or small. Along with the shooting and defense needed to compete at a high level. Let's see how they look in the first 20 games and then when Robinson comes back.

[SaveTheHens]

Not enough shooting in your lineup, yes og Mikal and even Kat can hit the 3, but not really snipers

What?! lol

KAT (40%) is a better shooter than Donte (37%) and can spot just as well if not better with the added height…not to mention how can you possibly say there’s not enough shooting. They have arguably the best shooting starting lineup in the league lol find me one better

Brunson - 40%
Bridges - 38%
OG - 38%
Towns - 40%

Donte - 8.7 3pa/game
Julius - 5.3 3pa/game
14 3pa on 37%

Towns - 5.3 3pa/game
OG - 4.5 3pa/game
Bridges - 7.2 3pa/game on 37.2%.
17 3PA on 38-39%

The 2 former Knicks almost matched the 3 new Knicks in volume.
Donte's movement n gravity n volume is severely being underrated here.

Boston would have a better 3pt shooting lineup
Philly can shoot with them

You're reaching a bit here just because Randle shouldn't be a part of that, wasn't a part of their playoff success. Overall they'll have more shooters & more shots up which is exciting.
But def on the right track that Donte will be missed, I don't know Bridges game as much but I see him as a spot up shooter, same with KAT, so they will miss a bit of Donte's sparkplug offence that can come from anywhere/be hard to defend.

Overall worth it though, they really needed some talent at the 4/5 spot.

[vini_vidi_vici]

He wasnt really great, Jokic just settled for 3s. 21 (and shot 19% on them) of 53 3PTAs in the whole POs came against KAT. They just played PnP with Kat playing drop coverage and he took them because they were mostly good looks.

[Clutch0z24]

For the people downplaying this trade....Id 1000 times would want Kat > Randle in any playoff matchup anyday of the week....And as for Donte....Well it sucks losing him but hes not a player that will cripple you if you lose him....Can be replaced....KAT is a huge upgrade and rises the ceiling of the team...

[PhilBlackson]

Not enough shooting in your lineup, yes og Mikal and even Kat can hit the 3, but not really snipers

What?! lol

KAT (40%) is a better shooter than Donte (37%) and can spot just as well if not better with the added height…not to mention how can you possibly say there’s not enough shooting. They have arguably the best shooting starting lineup in the league lol find me one better

Brunson - 40%
Bridges - 38%
OG - 38%
Towns - 40%

Donte - 8.7 3pa/game
Julius - 5.3 3pa/game
14 3pa on 37%

Towns - 5.3 3pa/game
OG - 4.5 3pa/game
Bridges - 7.2 3pa/game on 37.2%.
17 3PA on 38-39%

The 2 former Knicks almost matched the 3 new Knicks in volume.
Donte's movement n gravity n volume is severely being underrated here.

Boston would have a better 3pt shooting lineup
Philly can shoot with them

So they increased the overall volume AND improved the shooting percentages but that’s not enough?!

Need we mention that who’s to say KAT’s attempts don’t go up in NYK? Also both Bridges and KAT are far more versatile scorers…

The argument for volume and gravity with Donte doesn’t hold much weight when the volume is actually now greater overall and when if anything KAT’s “gravity” will actually pull the big man out of the paint which is more valuable especially for a PG that loves to post up as Brunson does. You’re also conveniently blurring Randle’s shooting with Donte’s who clearly wasn’t a floor spacer.

The only thing I can credit Donte is movement shooting but that’s less of a concern when the Knicks will have to be less reliant on that BECAUSE they have have so much shooting everywhere. It was more of a valid concern/need when Randle, Hart and Robinson were starters but that’s obviously no longer the case. I’m sorry but I’m not buying what you’re selling. I’m willing to bet the Knicks will be a much better shooting team by nearly every metric this year than were previously.

[DreamTeam09]

What?! lol

KAT (40%) is a better shooter than Donte (37%) and can spot just as well if not better with the added height…not to mention how can you possibly say there’s not enough shooting. They have arguably the best shooting starting lineup in the league lol find me one better

Brunson - 40%
Bridges - 38%
OG - 38%
Towns - 40%

Donte - 8.7 3pa/game
Julius - 5.3 3pa/game
14 3pa on 37%

Towns - 5.3 3pa/game
OG - 4.5 3pa/game
Bridges - 7.2 3pa/game on 37.2%.
17 3PA on 38-39%

The 2 former Knicks almost matched the 3 new Knicks in volume.
Donte's movement n gravity n volume is severely being underrated here.

Boston would have a better 3pt shooting lineup
Philly can shoot with them

So they increased the overall volume AND improved the shooting percentages but that’s not enough?!

Need we mention that who’s to say KAT’s attempts don’t go up in NYK?

The argument for volume and gravity with Donte doesn’t hold much weight when the volume is actually now greater overall and when if anything KAT’s “gravity” will actually pull the big man out of the paint which is more valuable especially for a PG that loves to post up as Brunson does. You’re also conveniently blurring Randle’s shooting with Donte’s who clearly wasn’t a floor spacer.

The only thing I can credit Donte is movement shooting but that’s less of a concern when the Knicks will have to be less reliant on that BECAUSE they have have so much shooting everywhere. It was more of a valid concern/need when Randle, Hart and Robinson were starters but that’s obviously no longer the case. I’m sorry but I’m not buying what you’re selling. I’m willing to bet the Knicks will be a much better shooting team by nearly every metric this year than were previously.

This is what I'll be interested in seeing that's all. Yeah I get they felt they could move off of DD because they just got Mikal and had a hole at the 5. So I get the trade, no disputing that. But bridges was gonna play with DD, so it's Kat vs DD in terms of the shooting in vs shooting out. You said Kat is a better shooter than DD because of 40 vs 37% and I would disagree with that sentiment.
They now have a lot of good/great spot up shooters, which may not bode well without a lot creativity & movement. I foresee more ball watching, who knows tho, maybe they get out in transition more now

[REJECTEDBYCLARK]

pretty volatile trade as towns has steadily been declining over the years whereas randle runs hot and cold and can't be relied upon, but if he happens to run hot when a guy like edwards is running cold then circumstance can make this a win for minnesota. then you have divincenzo having put up a career year but is he going to replicate it going forward?

going to be interesting to see how this plays out but i think anunoby gives them some flexibility to add a guy who leans so heavily towards offense like KAT. if KAT is able to fit with that group and resurrect some of his efficiency NYK wins the trade but my gut feeling is that he will be a let down and that DiVincenzo has a lot of great basketball ahead of him and Minny will get status quo from Randle and Minny wins the deal.

[JB7]

This was an obvious deal. Just surprised it finally happened, because the obvious ones many times don't happen for whatever reason.

Knicks needed a 2nd star to pair with Brunson. They get one whose value was depressed because of his contract. KAT will look good in the East, especially at C, where he'll just hang around the paint on D, and out on the perimeter on O. Solves NYK C problem, and now with a starting lineup of Brunson, Hart, Bridges, OG & KAT, they can compete with the Celtics for the best record in the East.

For Wolves this was an obvious salary dump and KAT was always the one that was going to be moved. Reid will supplement KATs role at a much lesser cost (Reid's deal is up the same time as Randle's - so Randle's expiring will free up room to re-up Reid). DDV is a nice pickup for Minny to add some wing depth and shooting. He might have been the final piece the Knicks were reluctant to part with, but with Mitchell down and IH leaving, they finally relented to get Towns in NYC.

And what are you guys worried about the Knicks bench for? Thibs is playing the starters 45mins+

Miles, Precious & Mitchell are seeing limited mins off the bench.

[HumbleRen]

KAT is the best spot up shooting big in the league who can give you 20-10-4 on any given night.

He’s flanked by Mikal and OG on defence. Don’t overthink it guys lol.

[PushDaRock]

Not enough shooting in your lineup, yes og Mikal and even Kat can hit the 3, but not really snipers

What?! lol

KAT (40%) is a better shooter than Donte (37%) and can spot just as well if not better with the added height…not to mention how can you possibly say there’s not enough shooting. They have arguably the best shooting starting lineup in the league lol find me one better

Brunson - 40%
Bridges - 38%
OG - 38%
Towns - 40%

Donte - 8.7 3pa/game
Julius - 5.3 3pa/game
14 3pa on 37%

Towns - 5.3 3pa/game
OG - 4.5 3pa/game
Bridges - 7.2 3pa/game on 37.2%.
17 3PA on 38-39%

The 2 former Knicks almost matched the 3 new Knicks in volume.
Donte's movement n gravity n volume is severely being underrated here.

Boston would have a better 3pt shooting lineup
Philly can shoot with them

Randle shot those 5.3 attempts per game at 31%, he's a very streaky shooter that can't be relied upon at 33% for his career. DiVincenzo had a career year from 3 that we aren't sure is sustainable at that volume yet since he's only done it one year as a high volume 3 point shooter. He was also a career high 21.3% in USG, which was a result of a lot of injuries to that team last year. I think they figured with a healthier team, he wasn't going to get those same opportunities he did last season.

Towns is arguably the best 3 point shooting big of all-time. OG's 3pa was actually 5.3 last season and he's had seasons over 6 at almost 2.5 makes a game. Bridges is pretty consistent with his 2.5 makes or so a game on 37%+. I think there's no question they improved their outside shooting since last season.

[dagger]

This feels like the kind of trade that will end up being a wash for both teams, although it does help Minnesota clean up its desperate finances long-term (they still are well over the second apron).

[deeps6x]

That Pistons pick is heavily protected.

Top 13 in 2025
Top 11 in 2026
Top 9 in 2027

This is why Toronto never made that Bruce Brown trade with the Knicks

Lol Masai will end up with a bag of chips for Brown in the end..

I'd take that **** Piston's pick right now for Bruce Brown. I think we'll be lucky to come away with a second for him at the trade deadline. Way to go Masai. You paid $23 million for a second round pick.

[Michael Bradley]

I think it's a good trade for both teams considering Minnesota's objective (clearing long term money). KAT can spread the floor and be a better fit around Brunson, so I think the Knicks are better than they were prior to the trade. Interesting to see how they gel as a team.

[UnbelievablyRAW]

People heavily underrating KAT if they think this is meh for the Knicks. Way better than Randle and can be a threat off ball. That KAT/Brunson pick and pop is gonna be lethal

OG/Bridges flanking on the wings for open 3's as well