The New York Knicks failed to land Donovan Mitchell from the Utah Jazz last season, and former Knicks GM Scott Perry has revealed why they walked away from the trade.
“Obviously we made a push to trade for him,” Perry said. “But it was going to be done within reason. He was a good player but he needed more around him to win. Because if he was that singular force, Utah probably would’ve been in the conference finals if he were that singular force. … But he wasn’t that singular force. That’s not a criticism against him. That’s just an evaluation that you must make.”
Perry later implied that the Knicks would have to part with two-thirds or three-quarters of their young talent and all of their draft capital to land Mitchell. To them, he wasn’t a franchise-carrying superstar to be worth all of that, and that’s fair.
Would the Knicks today be better if they had Mitchell? Sure, but they still wouldn’t be serious contenders. The 27-year-old is a special talent but isn’t regarded as a top-10 player in the league who can single-handedly change the fortunes of a franchise.
We saw that in his first season with the Cleveland Cavaliers, who acquired Mitchell for Lauri Markkanen, Collin Sexton, Ochai Agbaji, three unprotected first-round picks (2025, 2027, and 2029), and two pick swaps (2026 and 2028).
The Cavaliers went 51-31 in 2022-23, with Mitchell averaging 28.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, 4.4 assists, 1.5 steals, and 0.4 blocks per game. Everything was going great until the playoffs came around, as the Knicks knocked them out in five games in the first round.
It marked the fourth time in five seasons, that Mitchell’s teams had failed to reach the second round of the playoffs. As Perry, who parted ways with the Knicks this past offseason, says, he’s not criticizing the four-time All-Star, but only evaluating what he has done in the league so far.
The Knicks Might Still End Up Landing Donovan Mitchell
When the Knicks passed up on the chance to acquire Mitchell last year, they wouldn’t have thought that another chance at him would come their way soon, but it appears they might get it. NBA analyst Bill Simmons stated that Mitchell leaving the Cavaliers is the worst-kept secret in the NBA.
He can be a free agent in 2025, so if Mitchell demands a trade next year the Cavaliers won’t have a lot of leverage. The Knicks might be able to get him at a more reasonable price and I’d think they’d jump at that chance. In fact, reports indicate Mitchell is one of the players the Knicks are monitoring on the trade market.
Donovan Mitchell Spoke On The Failed Trade To The Knicks
It did seem for a while last year, that Mitchell would be headed to New York, and the man himself believed it was going to happen. Mitchell did address the failed trade to the Knicks last year, admitting that he thought the trade was going to go through. He had heard that RJ Barrett and a lot of draft picks were involved in the deal.
The Knicks, however, seemingly pulled out, as Perry said, as they did not want to give up a massive haul for him. That decision may end up being a great one if they do manage to land him at a cut-price rate in the next year or so. They’ll undoubtedly face stiff competition for his services, however.
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