Getty Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant of the Brooklyn Nets look on during the first half against the New York Knicks.
The New York Knicks may have struck out on their pursuit of Donovan Mitchell this summer, as the guard ended up being traded to the Cavaliers on September 1, but this doesn’t mean that a blockbuster deal still can’t be on the horizon for the franchise.
Ever since the Jazz shipped their All-Star out to Cleveland, fans and media pundits alike have been working tirelessly to try and figure out what the next move could be for Leon Rose and company.
To some, the ideal pivot would be for the Knicks to now set their sights on a deal for Oklahoma City guard, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Others have stated that the front office should now put effort into offloading the remaining four years, $117 million left on Julius Randle’s contract.
However, an anonymous Eastern Conference general manager recently told Heavy.com’s Sean Deveney that a new route for the Knicks could be pursuing a trade with their cross-borough rivals in the Brooklyn Nets for disgruntled superstar point guard, Kyrie Irving, and even concocted a package that they believe could get the job done.
New York Knicks receive:
- Kyrie Irving
Brooklyn Nets receive:
- Evan Fournier
- Derrick Rose
- Future first-round pick
The anonymous executive believes that such a deal could very well be one of, if not the best deal the Nets may wind up receiving should they look to shop their polarizing star.
Knicks May Have Best Offer for Irving
If the Brooklyn Nets place their point guard on the trade block, in all likelihood, there won’t be all that much of a line at the door inquiring about his services, as Irving has garnered the reputation of being an organizational headache due to his off-the-floor issues.
Despite being a seven-time All-Star, a three-time All-NBA selection, and an NBA Champion the 30-year-old almost certainly won’t have Sean Marks netting any monster hauls should he be shopped, as his wild card attitude makes it hard to predict what his desires will be once his current contract comes to an end next summer.
With his dreaded spontaneity, the anonymous Eastern Conference executive told Heavy.com that the Knicks could realistically be the team who could offer up the best package for Irving’s services.
“The Knicks would have a chance to re-sign him — that’s one of the big fears about dealing for Irving, that he is not going to stick around after the season, he is a rental player,” the executive told Deveney.
“But if you send out Evan Fournier and Derrick Rose and a pick, the Nets would have to consider that. It’s not much but if they are not sure Irving will be back, they might not do much better.”
As the executive said, the fear for any team who rosters Kyrie Irving should be that, due to his unpredictable attitude, he could opt to jump ship at a moment’s notice, which may make it hard for the Knicks to commit to offloading a draft pick and a highly impactful commodity in Derrick Rose in exchange for a mere “rental player.”
However, even with this, perhaps the front office could justify such a move from a financial perspective, as it would automatically clear $53.5 million in salary commitments from 2023 through 2025 which could be enough incentive to partake in such a hypothetical trade, even if Irving does decide to seek a contract elsewhere during next summer’s free agency period.
GM Sounds Off on Knicks’ Cam Reddish
The general manager didn’t just discuss trades that the Knicks could potentially take part in down the road but, also, trade decisions made in the past and, in specific, last season’s deal that brought Cam Reddish from Atlanta to New York.
When speaking with Sean Deveney, the executive didn’t mince words over this transaction, as history now seems to be repeating itself when it comes to the youngster’s position as an outsider within an organization.
“They gave up a first-round pick to get him to New York so there is no way they’re going to send him out for anything less than a first-round pick in return,” said the general manager.
“And even if you like his potential, you’re talking about a guy whose bad attitude got him traded out of one place (Atlanta) and is now saying he wants to be traded out of the new place (New York). I am not going to give up a first-rounder for an attitude like that. He played, what, 15 minutes a game for the Knicks? And he wants a trade? Forget it.”
Since being traded to the Knicks on January 13 of last season, Reddish has played in just 15 games and boasts sub-par averages of 6.1 points and 1.4 rebounds per game on 41.5% shooting from the floor and 25.8% shooting from distance.