Getty Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is not on the trading block yet.
The New York Knicks have gone into the new season without a superstar level talent, but they did snag Jalen Brunson who has looked very solid through two games.
Brunson hasn’t turned the ball over yet through his two games as a Knick, so it’s certainly a good start for him. There are many Knicks fans who would’ve loved to see the team land Donovan Mitchell, but he was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York was left holding the bag.
There’s a sense that other names out there could become available, and Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is one of those players. While general manager Sam Presti has so far stated his star guard isn’t available, things can change in a hurry in the NBA.
An Eastern Conference executive speaking to Heavy Sports’ Sean Deveney says the Knicks have a tough battle in landing Gilgeous-Alexander, and that there are two other teams that would make more sense.
2 More Teams Emerge
The Knicks often find themselves linked to just about any blockbuster traded as a result of playing in New York, but landing them has been proven to be very difficult for the team.
In the case of landing Gilgeous-Alexander, the Knicks might not have the assets necessary to make it happen according to the executive.
“The problem for the Knicks with Shai is that Sam (Presti) is going to want at least one good young player back for him and the Knicks don’t have anything that rises to that level,” the exec told Deveney.
This doesn’t mean the Knicks are totally devoid of assets to trade, but it’s just not as enticing as a team like the Raptors or Hawks would have, the two teams the exec named.
“They can match salaries with Fournier and Derrick Rose but that is not going to do it for the Thunder, no matter how many picks the Knicks include,” continued the exec. “A team like Atlanta or Toronto would be in a much better position to trade for him if that time comes.”
The Knicks do have young players like Quentin Grimes, Obi Toppin and Immanuel Quickley to dangle in trades, but it doesn’t quite compare to somebody like Scottie Barnes who could be included in a hypothetical trade.
Are the Knicks Fine?
Missing out on star talent is a tough pill to swallow for fans, but it might mean the Knicks are just fine in the long run. Not getting Mitchell allowed them to keep all of their future draft picks while also keeping both RJ Barrett and Quentin Grimes.
This won’t be enough to land somebody like Victor Wembanyama in the draft, but it does mean they’ll have more young talent to hoard or trade in the future. Instead of swinging for the fences in free agency, something the Knicks have been burned on in the past, they have the chance to build up through the draft, and that’s what they’ve been doing the past few years.
Adding a name like Jalen Brunson through free agency to go with their young core seems to have paid off for now, and if they can land mid-tier stars like that going forward while also developing players like Grimes and Barrett, the Knicks might be just fine.