RJ Barrett is a promising two-way wing that currently plays for the New York Knicks. He is generally viewed as the face of the franchise and has shown that he has a lot of potential, averaging 20.0 PPG, 5.8 RPG, and 3.0 APG for the team this past season.
This summer, the New York Knicks were heavily linked with star shooting guard Donovan Mitchell. They didn’t end up getting him, and part of that was due to RJ Barrett getting an extension.
Nevertheless, the Jazz greatly valued Barrett as part of any Mitchell deal with New York, and a deal without him would require the Knicks to relinquish far more draft assets than they’ve shown a willingness to do, sources said.
Once the Knicks committed to Barrett’s extension, management became resigned to the fact that there’s a much more difficult path to an offseason deal to acquire Mitchell.
While missing out on Donovan Mitchell may hurt the team in the short term, it is clear that the Knicks are valuing building the right way. There would be no point in trading for Donovan Mitchell if they couldn’t surround him with a competitive team due to giving up too many assets when making a move for him. Currently, the New York Knicks have a lot of solid young players that could potentially make them a contender in the future.
RJ Barrett Was Happy To Stay With The New York Knicks
RJ Barrett has recently spoken out about getting an extension from the New York Knicks. He claimed that he feels “honored and blessed” and added that the New York Knicks are a place he “wanted to be”. (10:30)
#9 RJ Barrett is here to say after signing an extension with the Knicks. Monica McNutt sits down with Barrett to discuss his decision to stay in New York City. https://t.co/0od1q3dvUC
— MSG Networks (@MSGNetworks) September 12, 2022
“It feels pretty good. I feel honored and blessed. This is a place where I wanted to be. I was happy they first drafted me and now with the extension, to be here four more years, will be great and I’m just excited to get to work.”
I love New York. My mom grew up in New York and this is kind of like home to me… I’ll always remember that first playoff game we had and how loud it was. A thing I’ll never forget and hope to get more of that.
Hopefully, the decision to retain RJ Barrett pays off for the New York Knicks. He certainly is far from his prime, and perhaps we will see him become a premier wing player in the future.
The New York Knicks made the playoffs during the 2020-21 season, but the Eastern Conference has gotten tougher since then. While it is unlikely that they make it next season, perhaps we will see them become consistently competitive later on in RJ Barrett’s tenure with the team.
