Knicks Shouldn't Mess With Chemistry Amid Giannis, NBA Trade Rumors

Veteran NBA insider Howard Beck reported on the Zach Lowe Show that, should Giannis Antetokounmpo be traded, one of the NBA superstar's preferred landing spots is the New York Knicks.

It is not difficult to see why, either. The team is one of the best in the Eastern Conference, has a bona fide star of their own in Jalen Brunson, and is one of two or three teams that can realistically advance to compete for a championship.

Adding Antetokounmpo would, in theory, be an enormous get for the organization and put them over the top as the undisputed favorites in the East. Except, it is a move the Knicks should absolutely avoid at all costs.

The team has indisputable chemistry right now. It got them to the third seed in the conference and has helped them advance to the semifinals, where they have played the Boston Celtics tough and hold the 2-1 advantage through three games.

Brunson has been the finisher the team needed, Karl-Anthony Towns leads the team in rebounds, OG Anunoby leads in steals, and Josh Hart tops the blocks list. Those four, plus Mikal Bridgers, are all averaging double-digits in scoring this postseason.

There is no guarantee that Antetokounmpo will come in, fit instantly, and ever develop that chemistry with the team's stars needed to win a championship. He never really did with Damian Lillard in Milwaukee and if other mega-team setups are any indication, they are as likely to fail as they are to succeed.

Why disrupt the chemistry that the Knicks have built, which has been a huge part of this current run toward an Eastern Conference title and, potentially, a Larry O'Brien Trophy, by introducing the unknown to the locker room?

Acquiring Antetokounmpo likely means trading away some of the very assets that helped get them to this point, only adding validity to the argument against considering a deal for the big man.

If the Knicks do fail to make it to the Eastern Conference Finals, there should be some reshuffling of the roster, perhaps at the center position, where Mitchell Robinson's injury history and less-than-stellar play in the postseason has raised some eyebrows.

Adding another megastar to the mix and potentially disrupting what Brunson has established as the unquestioned leader of the team, is the not the answer and, for the sake of the team and its reinvigorated fan base, should not be considered or executed by the front office.