Knicks ‘Eyeing’ Former NBA Champion Before Trade Deadline

Getty Is Barnes heading out of town?

The New York Knicks are being labeled as a major player going into the February 10 trade deadline, but so far, things have been quite quiet from their end.

Since they are the Knicks, they’ve been linked to just about every big name player out there, including CJ McCollum, but all of that has been just chatter up until now. With the Blazers shipping McCollum to New Orleans, that’s another star player the Knicks missed out on.

With the Kings acquiring Domantas Sabonis in exchange for Tyrese Haliburton, it appears the elusive Julius Randle-De’Aaron Fox is also dead in the water.

However, a new report has indicated the Knicks have their eyes on another player from the Kings and this time it’s Harrison Barnes. While Barnes might be best known by many fans for his role with the 2015 NBA Champions Golden State Warriors, he’s carved out a nice career for himself since leaving the Bay Area.

This season with the Kings, he’s averaging close to 17 points per game while also shooting 40.5 percent from three, meaning he can provide a lot of value to a team looking for shooting.

The New York Post’s Marc Berman reports the Knicks are eyeing the talented forward in a potential trade.

Barnes to New York

Getty ImagesHarrison Barnes of the Kings handles the ball.

In today’s NBA, there’s a lot of value in grabbing a true shooter, and that’s especially true if it’s somebody who can play either forward position like Barnes can.

Before the Kings-Pacers trade even happened, Berman reports that multiple sources said Barnes would be available in a trade.

“Before the Haliburton trade, multiple sources said the Kings would be amenable to trading the 29-year-old Barnes, who played for the Warriors’ super teams,” he wrote. “In fact, word around the league was everyone on the Sacramento roster is fair game.”

This doesn’t mean the Knicks will for sure be grabbing the forward in a trade, but it is something to keep an eye on.

Considering Barnes sports an $80 million salary, there would likely have to be some returning pieces here from the Knicks, and it’d have to be a high-priced player. Evan Fournier would fit the bill, but you’d have to wonder why the Kings would take a trade like that.

What Will the Knicks Do?

GettyCould Randle really be shipped out of town?

There are a lot of eyes on the Knicks and what the team will do during this trade deadline season. While there are a ton of different paths they can take, one possible thing they do is nothing at all.

If the Knicks want to get a big haul for their players, they can just wait for the offseason. Randle and Fournier aren’t going anywhere because of their massive contracts, and if they want out then they might want to wait until the offseason.

That would be the time where times have the most cap space available, and it’d give the Knicks a chance to really see if there are suitors for some of their higher priced players.

This doesn’t mean they won’t be active at the trade deadline, but it looks like a blockbuster trade might be off the table for now.

READ NEXT: Knicks’ Tom Thibodeau Ripped for Role in Star’s Injury