Last Updated on February 2, 2023 2:04 pm by Steve Vidovich | Published: January 18, 2023

GM: Jared Russo, @jaredrusso

Salary Cap: $142,534,666

Luxury Tax: $7,732,334

GOAL: Do the Knicks go star hunting once again? The Knicks actually have a lot of picks they can trade for upgrades. Usually, I’d say for a team stuck in the 5-6 seed range to not push chips in, but the Knicks are in position to do that without many repercussions.

Priorities

• Assess the trade market for Cam Reddish

o   Recoup asset you can get for him since he’s on an expiring contract
o   You can attach him to D Rose to get an upgrade for a team looking for cap relief

• Can get to up to $25,693,978 for the combo of those two guys

• Try getting off Evan Fournier’s money on the books next year

• Rumor: Knicks are willing to move off of Immanuel Quickley for a first round pick so see how good of a pick you can get

• Would you want to upgrade at the center position?

• You have a ton of draft equity that can put you in play for almost any player if you want to

Players to Dangle

Evan Fournier (3/$55.9 w/ TO in 2024-25)

o   Salary: $17,999,999

o   Can match up to $22,999,999 by himself

o   Try getting off his contract for either a) an upgrade or b) an expiring deal to get off his contract

o   Suggested trade: Evan Fournier + Cam Reddish to Lakers for Kendrick Nunn + Patrick Beverly

o   Can match up to: $23,954,453 by attaching Fournier + Reddish

Mitchell Robinson (4/$60)

o   Salary: $17,045,454

o   Can match up to $22,045,454 on his own

o   Can you get a center upgrade in a deal involving him?

Derrick Rose (2/$30.1 w/ TO in 2023-24)

o   Salary: $14,520,729

o   Expiring contract that’s not in the rotation, trade him for an upgrade

o   Can trade him for up to $19,520,729 by himself

Cam Reddish (1/$5.9)

o   Seems like he’s having the same issues he had in Atlanta and he’s an expiring contract, so try recouping whatever asset you can

o   Salary: $5,954,454

o   Can match up to $10,520,294 on his own

Obi Toppin (2/$12.2)

o   Salary: $5,348,280

o   Can match up to $9,459,490

o   Toppin might be the first young asset to go in a trade for an upgrade

Immanuel Quickley (2/$6.5)

o   Salary: $2,316,240

o   Can match up to $4,153,420

o   Apparently Knicks would consider moving him for a first round pick

Trade Targets

• Bogdan Bogdanovic
• Joe Harris & Seth Curry
• Kelly Oubre Jr., Terry Rozier, Gordon Hayward
• Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, Nikola Vucevic
• Alex Caruso
• Bojan Bogdanovic
• Eric Gordon
• Myles Turner & Buddy Hield
• Patrick Beverley & Kendrick Nunn
• D’Angelo Russell
• Terrence Ross & Gary Harris
• OG Anunoby & Gary Trent Jr.
• Kyle Kuzma

o   Kuzma has ties to CAA, so this would make a TON of sense

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Assets Owned

• 2023 1st
• 2023 DAL 1st (top 10 protected)
• 2023 DET 1st (top 18 protected in ‘23 & ‘24, top 13 protected in ‘25, top 11 protected in ‘26, top 9 protected in ‘27 and if not then conveys to 2027 2nd)
• 2023 WAS 1st (lotto protected, top 12 protected in ‘24, top 10 protected in ‘25, top 8 protected in ‘26, and then conveys to 2026 & 2027 2nd)
• 2024 1st
• 2025 MIL 1st (top four protected)
• 2025 1st
• 2026 1st
• 2027 1st
• 2028 1st
• 2029 1st
• 2024 2nd (more favorable of CLE & UTA)
• 2024 DET 2nd
• 2025 BKN 2nd
• 2026 2nd
• 2026 MIN 2nd
• 2027 2nd
• 2028 2nd
• 2029 2nd

 

Mock Trades to Date (Feb 2 Deadline)

 

Grizzlies add depth

TRADE: Grizzlies trade Danny Green, Xavier Tillman, 2024 TOR 2nd, and 2025 NOP 2nd to the Knicks for Isaiah Hartenstein and Cam Reddish

 

On the Bird Rights Podcast, I told the Grizzlies GM, David Williams, that I was underwhelmed with this deal, but I think that’s because we value Cam Reddish differently. The Grizzlies are one of the more intriguing teams on the trade market because they are a legitimate contender and have plenty of assets to move in order to improve. However, David felt that Reddish was a great flier because the Grizzlies’ player development program is elite and he felt they could get the most out of the former lottery pick. In addition, with Steven Adams getting played off the court in last year’s playoffs, Isaiah Hartenstein gives the Grizzlies extra insurance as a big man who won’t get eaten alive in pick-and-rolls like Adams or Brandon Clarke. While I felt the Grizzlies could’ve made a splashier move, they are adding even more depth to a very deep team. 

For the Knicks, it’s been reported they want two second round picks for Reddish, and they got that with this deal. However, it came at the expense of flipping Hartenstein for Xavier Tillman and Danny Green’s expiring deal. While the Knicks just signed Hartenstein this offseason, they get Tillman on a very team-friendly deal this year and next, as he makes just $1.9 million next year. Keep in mind that this trade was completed pre-Mitch Robinson injury, so i’m not sure if Hartenstein would’ve been moved if they knew Robinson would be missing at least the next three weeks. 

 

Rockets and Knicks swap role players

TRADE: Rockets trade Garrison Mathews and their 2024 2nd round pick to the Knicks for Miles McBride

Our Rockets GM, Cooper Klein, is not a Garrison Mathews fan and for that reason, he was ecstatic to get value for him. While McBride is not playing much for the Knicks, he can provide valuable guard depth to the Rockets. The Knicks get a player who’s perceived as a good shooter with gravity, plus an expectation that the Rockets second-round pick will be in the 30s or low 40s in 2024 in exchange for McBride.

 

Knicks and Bulls exchange former lottery picks

TRADE: The New York Knicks trade Obi Toppin to the Chicago Bulls for Coby White

For lack of a better term, this is one of those “my trash for your trash” trades. However, both of these players are far from “trash.” For Toppin, he’s stuck behind Julius Randle on a team with a coach who plays his starters significantly more minutes than he should, while White has fallen out of favor for the most part in Chicago. For the Knicks, they get a microwave scorer who’s best suited in a sixth-man role. However, unless the Knicks move Immanuel Quickley before this exercise is over, their skill-sets are pretty repetitive. Not to mention that White is hitting restricted free agency this summer and likely expects to be paid more than what the Knicks would be willing to pay. 

For the Bulls, they get a flier on an athletic 3-and-D stretch four who can potentially be their power forward of the future if Patrick Williams is unable to put his tools together. There was plenty of trade interest for Toppin on the market, Miami being one of them. And with another year left on his rookie deal, Toppin is cheap labor and a great flier for the Bulls. Even if the Bulls decide to “blow it up” and trade some of their high caliber players, Toppin can fit that rebuild. If the Bulls decide to keep the core together, then Toppin fits a role on the current team as well. 

 

Knicks, Cavs, and Spurs exchange wings

TRADE:

Knicks receive Caris LeVert

Cavaliers receive Josh Richardson

Spurs receive Evan Fournier, Dallas’ 2023 1st (top-10 protected), Golden State’s 2024 2nd (via Cleveland; top-55 protected) and the rights to Luke Travers

 

This trade makes sense for all three teams in a sense. While Caris LeVert is the superior player between himself and Josh Richardson nowadays, Cleveland made subsequent moves that made this trade make a lot more sense. Cleveland is desperate for consistent wings who can defend and shoot. The issue with LeVert is that he’s a wing who’s best with the ball in his hands, and between Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell, LeVert has become an afterthought in the offense. While Richardson plays a much more complementary role for the Cavaliers than LeVert does, he reminds me a bit of Isaac Okoro in the aspect of he’s able to defend, but can’t really shoot. Again, Cleveland adds multiple other wings in subsequent trades to their roster, so please hold judgment for now. 

For the Knicks, they appear to be getting the best player in the deal with Caris LeVert. He slots in nicely as a sixth man behind RJ Barrett, and he’s a guy who Tom Thibodeau can rely on to play heavy minutes in case of injury. Additionally, the Knicks traded the Mavs’ 2023 first to the Spurs to take on the remaining $18.5 million in Evan Fournier’s money next year. LeVert is a free agent after this summer, so acquiring his Bird Rights will give the Knicks the ability to re-sign him if they so choose. But because the Knicks also got off of Hartenstein and Toppin’s money as well as Fournier, they could theoretically get to over $30 million in cap space if they renounce Caris LeVert, Coby White, and all their team options and non-guaranteed deals.

For the Spurs, they’re doing what a tanking team should be doing. They have ample cap space to acquire bad salary in order to accumulate assets. Here, they take on Fournier’s deal next year and acquire another first for their services, as well as acquiring another potential second round pick and the rights to an international draft and stash. While Fournier’s money is seen as a net negative, he has a team option in 2024-25 that the team can decline and open up ample cap space next summer. Given they’ve already gotten off Doug McDermott’s $13,750,000 guaranteed deal next year, they can still have up to $45-$50 million in cap space depending on how they handle Jakob Poeltl’s contract this summer. 

 

Knicks clear money

Knicks trade Derrick Rose to the Spurs for Khem Birch

 

For the Spurs, they’re going to have an ample amount of cap space this summer, and opened up even more when they traded Doug McDermott. However, Khem Birch was on the books for next year. By flipping Birch’s guaranteed 2023-24 salary to the Knicks for Derrick Rose’s non guarantee, it opens up close to an additional $7 million in cap space. For the Knicks, they had already traded Isaiah Hartenstein away, so Birch would compete with newly acquired Xavier Tillman and Jericho Sims as the backup to Mitch Robinson. Birch’s contract is also relatively easy to move so if the Knicks need the cap flexibility this summer (they aren’t projected to be a cap space team), then he can easily be moved again.