$206 Million Star Could Decide Fate of Potential Knicks Blockbuster

Getty Russell Westbrook of the Los Angeles Lakers dribbles the ball during the second half of a game against the Miami Heat.

With the decision to extend 22-year-old wing RJ Barrett to a four-year, $120 million contract, the New York Knicks have put themselves in quite a tricky situation.

On the one hand, said move assures that they’ll have their incredibly promising young talent for several years beyond his initial rookie-scale deal, making him the first Knicks first-round selection since Charlie Ward in 1999 to sign an extension.

On the other, however, it appears that the ball club still covets a deal that would land them Utah Jazz star Donovan Mitchell, though, considering their decision to commit long-term to Barrett, this complicates their desires considerably.

Per an August 23 report by SNY’s Ian Begley, Jazz CEO Danny Ainge has a “strong interest” in acquiring the 2019 lottery pick if he ends up trading his franchise cornerstone to the Knicks.

However, now with the team’s commitment to four more years of Barrett, concocting a trade that piques the interest of Utah is slated to get far more complicated should New York wish to continue their pursuit.

In order to make any hypothetical deal worthwhile for both parties, another team will almost certainly have to be included in the mix, and the most buzzed-about tertiary trade partner of late seems to be the Los Angeles Lakers.

After winning the 2020 NBA Finals, the Lakers have fallen off rather rapidly, as they barely squeaked into the playoffs in their follow-up campaign only to be trounced in round one and, most recently, missed out on the big dance entirely with a sub-.500 record of 33-49.

Considering their lackluster success over the past two years despite owning one of the league’s highest payrolls, many believe that the Lakers could be willing to take part in offseason dealings should it help rid themselves of some undesired contracts.

One player, in particular, that they’ve been trying to part ways with since mid-way through last season is nine-time All-Star and 2016-17 NBA Most Valuable Player, Russell Westbrook, who, at a payday of $206 million with a 2022-23 salary of $47 million, ranks in as the third-highest paid player in the association despite having just put up arguably the worst season of his career.

So, how does this all play into a possible blockbuster between the Knicks and Jazz?

Westbrook Could be Key to Knicks Trade

As things currently stand, both the Knicks and Jazz seem to be a bit far apart when it comes to deciding on a potential trade package that would send Donovan Mitchell to New York. Currently, Utah is looking to acquire several young talents as well as upwards of seven first-round picks in a deal that Leon Rose and company are not willing to adhere to.

That said, the idea of adding the Lakers into the exchange could wind up solving each team’s problem, as they may be desperate enough to rid themselves of Westbrook’s lofty by adding on the extra draft capital that Leon Rose and company won’t.

At least, that’s what Bleacher Report’s Eric Pincus seems to believe in his August 31 article discussing the notion of Westbrook possibly being the “missing piece” in this Mitchell sweepstakes.

“The core concept gets the Knicks off the hook for some of the needed draft compensation to get the deal done, putting that burden on the Lakers, who are still hoping to find a taker for Westbrook,” Pincus wrote.

“The Jazz might prefer Westbrook at $47.1 million over one season over Fournier’s guaranteed $36.9 million over two. If Utah can get off of additional salary, it could save money overall while adding first-round pick(s) from the Lakers.

“Los Angeles may be open to parting with one of its 2027 or 2029 first-round picks to get out of Westbrook. To send both, the Lakers must believe they are gaining a reasonable chance to compete at the highest level in the Western Conference. On paper, the Lakers are a poor shooting team that would improve dramatically by adding two marksmen like Bojan Bogdanovic and Fournier.”

From New York’s side of things, they’d still have to give up several of their young core players as well as a few draft picks, but it would ultimately be less than what would be required of them in a straight-up deal and, in the end, would still land them Mitchell.

Barrett Could Still Be Traded

While many are hoping that New York’s decision to extend RJ Barrett means that the franchise is taking him off the table when it comes to Donovan Mitchell trade talks, in an August 30 episode of “Get Up,” ESPN NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski reported that, though it may be a bit more complex, the wing could still wind up finding himself shipped out to Salt Lake City.

“There’s still a pathway. It’s more complicated, but RJ Barrett now, four years, nearly $120 million. [He] averaged 20 points in his third season in New York. He could still be a part of the package, it just becomes more complicated for New York and Utah to do a Donovan Mitchell trade,” Wojnarowski said.

Wojnarowski would continue by stating that he expects both Utah and New York to “start talking again” at some point before training camps open in late September, which is a belief shared by many others who are “in the know.”