'Trade Down' Scenarios for New York Knicks' No. 4 NBA Draft Pick
After the worst season in franchise history, the New York Knicks are armed with their highest draft pick in 30 years. So naturally, they're looking to trade down.
Maybe.
ESPN New York's Ian Begley seems to make this inference, and general manager Steve Mills told NJ.com in May, "We're open to looking at different opportunities to continue to improve our team."
Team president Phil Jackson hasn't made anything official yet, but the Knicks are working out players projected to fall well beyond their No. 4 pick: Cameron Payne and, to some extent, Willie Cauley-Stein.
There's a high chance that point guard Emmanuel Mudiay will be available at No. 4, and a smaller chance that D'Angelo Russell, lead guard out of Ohio State, could be there. But as Jackson's Los Angeles Lakers and Chicago Bulls teams rarely ever emphasized point guard play, the trade-down speculation has only heated up.
Rightly or wrongly, Jackson seems to value fit in the triangle offense over general potential. Frank Isola of the New York Daily News alluded to this last month when he reported that the Knicks were "enamored" with Kentucky forward Trey Lyles. At 6'10", Lyles projects to be an NBA power forward—the same position Carmelo Anthony will likely transition to over the next few years.
SB Nation's Yaron Weitzman summed up the team's logic surrounding a potential trade back:
"Falling out of the top three pushed them into this gray area where it seems like they're going to be picking a player who they might not like especially much. Like Mudiay, (Mario) Hezonja and (Kristaps) Porzingis are unknowns. Cauley-Stein is huge and could be an excellent rim protector, but he has limited offensive skills. (Justise) Winslow is the most intriguing of the bunch, but took a while to fully come on during his one year at Duke.
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There are still a few weeks until draft night, so several more reports with new information could emerge before then. But if the team is considering moving down in the draft order, here are a few potential deals that we could see.
Acquiring Ty Lawson and a pick from Denver
If New York is interested in adding a point guard but isn't in love with either top (available) prospect in the draft, the Denver Nuggets may be able to help.
They're in a transition phase between regimes, and the Denver Post's Chris Dempsey reported in May that Ty Lawson's time in Denver could be running out.
Nuggets management may wish to draft its own point guard, and either Mudiay or Russell will likely be there at No. 4. With the Nuggets looking to shed salary, taking back Jose Calderon's $7 million deal wouldn't be an easy task but would be necessary to make the trade legal.
This is why New York would need to sweeten the pot by adding Tim Hardaway Jr. A low-salary player—say—Quincy Acy, would also need to be thrown in to make it work.
(These stipulations apply if the teams want to get a deal done on draft night. After July 1, New York would simply be able to absorb Lawson into its cap space, and Denver wouldn't need to accept Calderon in return.)
| No. 4 pick | No. 7 pick |
| Jose Calderon | Ty Lawson |
| Tim Hardaway Jr. | Future pick |
| Quincy Acy |
Acquiring the No. 7 pick, Lawson and a future pick for the No. 4 selection, Calderon, Hardaway and a throw-in would accomplish several things.
The point guard position would be shored up for at least the next two years by a player who's relatively young (27) and a potential All-Star in the Eastern Conference. A top prospect will be available at No. 7, whether it be Cauley-Stein, Porzingis or Hezonja. And netting a future pick—possibly getting back into the 2016 first round would be the kicker—depends on how badly Denver desires to move up.
Both players have evolved since, but Lawson and Anthony have enjoyed decent history together. In each of the point guard's first two NBA campaigns, the Nuggets outscored their opponents by more than six points per 100 possessions when Anthony and Lawson shared the court, according to Basketball-Reference.com.
New York would still have about $20 million in cap space to spend in free agency, and after a poor season adjusting to the triangle, Hardaway's future with the Knicks is already in question. That's a potential void that could be easily filled.
If Denver truly desires to move on from the George Karl era, dealing Lawson would be the biggest step in that direction. If New York puts the right package together, it could be the beneficiary.
Acquiring Darren Collison from the Kings
The Knicks have been linked to Darren Collison in trades before, but draft day could provide them with a chance to land the point guard while maintaining a shot at drafting top-tier talent.
| No. 4 Pick | No. 6 Pick |
| Jose Calderon | Darren Collison |
| Nik Stauskas |
Swapping the fourth pick for the sixth pick, and swapping Calderon for Collison and Nik Stauskas, would be worthwhile for both sides—assuming that Karl desires the Kings to draft his own point guard heading into his first full season in Sacramento. Karl would have his wish, while Calderon could fill a role as a reliable three-point shooter and point man off the bench.
His $7 million salary figure shouldn't matter as much to the Kings, who aren't projected to have much cap room this summer regardless, according to Basketball Insiders.
The Knicks could either run with Collison as their starting point guard or look to draft another—possibly Payne at No. 6, if Jackson likes him enough to reach that far—or add one via free agency.
Before suffering a season-ending injury after 45 games, Collison was averaging a career high in points with 16.1 to go along with 5.1 assists.
Stauskas struggled with his shot for much of the year but did shoot 42 percent from three-point range once his minutes became more consistent over the final 22 games. In a perfect world, he could be what Hardaway was during his rookie season. On a cheap contract, he's worth a flier, especially since he won't be taking any cap room away from New York—he and Collison combine to match Calderon's $7 million.
Karl would have a lead guard in either Mudiay or Russell to run the show with pace and find DeMarcus Cousins, while also creating for himself. If the coach plans on making a statement in his first summer with Sacramento, this would surely work.
Taking Brandon Jennings in a low-risk, high-reward deal
According to several projections and comments, it sounds an awful lot like Stanley Johnson and the Detroit Pistons are a match made in heaven.
Leave it to the Knicks to ruin a good thing.
If Jackson is feeling extra diabolical on draft night, he could reach for Johnson at No. 4, only to dangle him back to Detroit, who picks eighth, for a price: No. 8, No. 38 and Brandon Jennings. Calderon's salary would be needed to make the money match.
| No. 4 Pick | No. 8 Pick |
| Jose Calderon | No. 38 Pick |
| Brandon Jennings |
Jennings' $8.3 million comes off the books after next season, and after Stan Van Gundy traded for Reggie Jackson at the deadline, it's reasonable to think the Pistons are interested in re-signing the latter.
Detroit needs shooting, and Calderon can provide that as a reserve. He shot 52 percent from distance over 28 games with the Pistons in 2012-13 and is a much better complement to Jackson than Jennings would be.
For the Knicks, Jennings would get a shot at running the triangle. He's coming off his best year as a pro—albeit an injury-shortened one—averaging 15.4 points and 6.6 assists with a career-best 52.2 true shooting percentage and 19.7 player efficiency rating over 41 games.
He wouldn't cost New York any free-agent money, and if it doesn't pan out, the team can let him walk after one season—essentially freeing themselves of Calderon's final contract year.
At No. 8, the Knicks would be in a position to draft several players Jackson has been linked to including Lyles, Payne and possibly Cauley-Stein. Depending on how tentative teams are to select European talent, Porzingis or Hezonja could be waiting there as well.
The argument could be made that New York should simply sit back at No. 4 and select the player with the highest probability of panning out. But with the Knicks, it's rarely that simple.
Jackson will undoubtedly assess any and every option the Knicks have with the fourth selection, so be prepared for even more rumors and speculation until June 25.
Follow me on Twitter @JSDorn6.
Stats from Basketball-Reference; Salary info from Basketball Insiders.
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