The New York Knicks are having a very good season this year and they’re not planning to stop there. With good players like Immanuel Quickly, Julius Randle and RJ Barrett, this team has taken their game to the next level when nobody believed they were going to do it.
Tom Thibodeau has done a terrific job with his players and this is the result of that. They are 8th in the Eastern Conference, trying to advance to the 2021 NBA playoffs. They’re still a young team but they could land a piece that can lift them above plenty of teams in the East. In recent days, the New Yorkers have been linked with Zach LaVine, one of the most entertaining stars in the league but who plays in the struggling Chicago Bulls.
According to Ian Bagley of SNY, the Knicks are following LaVine’s situation very closely.
Over the summer, we noted that the Knicks and Nets were both doing background work on Zach LaVine’s situation in Chicago to be prepared for the possibility of the Bulls listening to trade offers for the young guard.
Obviously, now that Brooklyn has traded for James Harden, you can count the Nets out on LaVine. But as the 2021 trade deadline approaches, the Knicks are still keeping an eye on LaVine’s situation in Chicago, per SNY sources.
LaVine can be a free agent in 2022. So you can be sure that the Knicks are among many teams monitoring the dynamic between the Bulls and their young star. It’s unclear if Chicago is open to listening to offers on LaVine, who will likely command a max contract as a free agent.
The Knicks’ interest in LaVine isn’t new and this season they have a big opportunity to land the player. LaVine would improve their level big time and make them at least a top 6 team in the East. NBC’s KC Johnson reported that Bulls’ new president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas is prioritizing cap flexibility for the team and that could lead LaVine to leave the organization.
The swingman has been linked with the Los Angeles Lakers, too, so the battle for this player should be an entertaining one.
