Knicks Must Trade for Hornets' P.J. Washington for Championship Push amid NBA Rumors

The New York Knicks won 86.7 percent of their games in January and sit fourth in the Eastern Conference, and they could look to make one more move to strengthen their depth ahead of Thursday's 3:00 p.m. ET trade deadline.

Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports reported the team has expressed "legitimate interest" in Charlotte Hornet's P.J. Washington.

The 25-year-old power forward is seeing 29.3 minutes of floor time this season and is averaging 13.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game. He is shooting a career-worst 33.1 from beyond the arc, but he is a career 36 percent shooter from downtown. He's also shooting 45.2 percent from the floor this year.

Of course, the down year could be attributed to playing for one of the worst teams in the NBA. Charlotte is 10-39 this season and sits 13th in the East. It is not particularly surprising that the Hornets would listen to suitors for their most talented young players.

Washington is young enough for a coach like Tom Thibodeau to course-correct any bad habits and turn him into a contributor to a Knicks team with championship aspirations.

The potential for those three-point numbers to rise while playing alongside Jalen Brunson is real, as is improvement defensively playing alongside OG Anunoby, who the team acquired in a trade with Toronto in December.

The key for New York would be to not give up any players it deems as essential to its championship pursuit—now and in the future.

Fischer wrote, "It's become clear the Knicks aren't willing to part with Quentin Grimes unless New York is trading the young swingman for a perceived upgrade, sources said, as opposed to swapping him for a different back-of-the-rotation piece."

Grimes gives the Knicks 20.2 minutes a game and is shooting 36.3 from beyond the arc. He is a 2021 first-round pick with solid upside and not someone the team wants to just hand over for a sideways move, as he could be a key piece in a more significant deal. Fischer also reported that the Utah Jazz and Atlanta Hawks have shown interest in Grimes.

As for the Knicks' current rotation, the aforementioned Anunoby is out with elbow inflammation.

Picking up a player like Washington, who adds depth, can eat up minutes and contribute on both sides of the ball, is a move that will pay dividends late in the season when playoff seeding is decided and championships are won.

In this case, the youthfulness of the player can help ensure sustained success beyond this one season, something Knicks fans have not been all that familiar with over the last two decades.