Proposed Trade ‘Saves’ Knicks by Landing 20 PPG Scorer

The New York Knicks seem to be stuck in mediocrity, and while they have the chance to hit the .500 mark at 13-13 with a win over the Charlotte Hornets, there’s not a ton of hope they can go on much further than that.

Trades remain a possibility for the team, but shipping players out for the sake of doing isn’t a recipe for success. However, we’re looking at a situation where Derrick Rose, Evan Fournier and Cam Reddish are all out of the rotation. Each of those players holds different levels of value, and that could be something that stops the Knicks from trading them.

However, all it takes is one other team to see the value, and that could be what they’re banking on.

The Washington Wizards are a team, like the Knicks, that appear to be stuck in mediocrity and a trade might be how to get things jump started for them. Bleacher Report’s Dan Favale suggests a move that would see the Knicks “save” their season by landing Kyle Kuzma in exchange for Julius Randle.

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Wizards and Knicks Swap Forwards

Since leaving the Lakers, Kuzma has come into his own as a lead option on a team, and he’s averaging a career-high 20.6 points per game with the Wizards through 24 games.

Favale cooks up two different deals that would see Kuzma end up in a Knicks jersey, and one of them would have Randle and Reddish joining the Wizards.

• New York Knicks Receive: Will Barton, Vernon Carey Jr., Kyle Kuzma
• Washington Wizards Receive: Julius Randle, Cam Reddish, Washington’s own 2023 first-round pick, Dallas’ 2023 first-round pick (top-10 protection)

This deal would help the Wizards keep their play-in hopes alive, and perhaps given them even more firepower to make a run by adding the high-upside Reddish.

For the Knicks, they’d get a scorer who has shown he can stretch the floor a bit better than Randle, and that might prove to be a better fit than Randle is with both Jalen Brunson and RJ Barrett.

Favale even argues the trade would be worthwhile for the Knicks even if Kuzma decides to leave the team in free agency.

“The Knicks might be reticent to acquire Kuzma on the verge of his entering free agency,” he wrote. “They shouldn’t be. He provides rock-solid two-way minutes at the 4 these days and fits alongside any one of their bigs and immediately becomes their second-best player. At 27, he’s someone they can look to keep around, and his next deal probably checks in cheaper on an annual basis than Randle’s agreement. If Kuzma leaves, they’re still out from under Randle’s massive contract and the rotation warts he poses.”

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What Does Kuzma Solve?

While Kuzma does seem like he could potentially fit better with the Knicks, there are some red flags to be aware of. The high-scoring forward is taking more than seven threes a game, and he’s shooting them at a 30.8 percent clip. That’s a number you’d want to be higher if he’s going to be taking that many a game.

He’s also taking a career-high 17.1 shots per game, and putting him on the Knicks would likely see that number drop a bit. However, that might cause his efficiency to rise since he’s playing alongside a proven playmaker with Brunson.

For the Knicks, it’s certainly a gamble to get Kuzma as the him and Randle bring a lot of the same elements to the table, but getting a better defender for cheaper might be something worth considering. As Favale notes, even if he leaves in free agency, it’s a way to get out of Randle’s contract earlier than expected.

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