It must be hard being a New York Knicks fan, as there’s always the same news cycle during the offseason. They say they’re going to pursue multiple superstars and end up overpaying for players that just aren’t able to lead them back to contention.
This time, however, given the moves they’ve done in the front office, might finally be the year when they get over the hump and are able to land a star or two. In fact, the New York Knicks could be back to the playoffs rather sooner than later.
It seems like the Knicks are going to be quite aggressive this summer in their pursuit of a bonafide player that can bring some joy back to the Madison Square Garden. Here, we’ll break down the top 5 stars the Knicks could land this season.
Victor Oladipo
Trade Package: Kevin Knox, Dennis Smith Jr, Elfrid Payton
Victor Oladipo and the Indiana Pacers are reportedly ready to move on from each other right now. The Pacers want to go in a different direction centered around TJ Warren and Myles Turner, while Oladipo is determined to be a team’s go-to-guy right now.
The New York Knicks could put the ball in his hands to let him showcase his talent and earn that lucrative contract extension he wants. The Indiana Pacers could lance some solid backup players instead of letting Oladipo just walk away for free.
Carmelo Anthony
The New York Knicks really did Carmelo Anthony wrong. He was used as the team’s scapegoat and wasn’t the one to blame for his struggles. Now, however, they have the chance to redeem themselves by signing him to come back to his beloved team.
Anthony proved that he’s still capable of putting up a lot of points on the scoreboard despite embracing a lesser role with the Portland Trail Blazers this season. The best part is that they wouldn’t have to part ways with any assets as he’s a free agent.
Paul George
Trade Package: Julius Randle, Kevin Knox, Dennis Smith Jr, and the 8th overall pick
Let’s be honest for a second here. Things aren’t going well with the Los Angeles Clippers. Some of their players didn’t care for Paul George’s end-of-season speech and it feels like they could be better off just trading him away to get some assets back.
George is one of the best two-way players in the league and the Knicks have been craving for a star for years. They’d have to part ways with this year’s 8th overall pick but the talent gap is so big after the top 5 that they wouldn’t hesitate to pull the trigger. Also, the Clippers could avoid paying Montrezl Harrell as they’d keep Julius Randle.
Chris Paul
Trade Package: Julius Randle, Kevin Knox, Dennis Smith Jr, and a first-round pick
Most people slept on Chris Paul this season and he proved again that he’s far from done. He had one of the best seasons of his career and led a rebuilding Oklahoma City Thunder to the 5th seed in the Western Conference. In fact, they were one win away from getting past the first round.
The New York Knicks are reportedly interested in making Chris Paul their new point guard, and while absorbing that huge deal on an aging player may be a risk, CP3 has turned every single team he’s been into a playoff team and a legit contender.
Russell Westbrook
Trade Package: Julius Randle, Taj Gibson, Kevin Knox, Dennis Smith Jr, 27th overall pick, 2021 Mavericks pick for Russell Westbrook
There are a lot of questions regarding the Houston Rockets’ future. They don’t have Daryl Morey or a head coach anymore and it seems like the front office is ready to move on from their experiment with Russell Westbrook next to James Harden.
Westbrook is eager to redeem himself and there wouldn’t be a better stage to do it than the Madison Square Garden. The Knicks want a marquee player that can lead them back to the playoffs, so this could be a match made in heaven for both parties, as we reported earlier.
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