Ranking Knicks' Top Trade Targets After 2026 NBA Finals Win
The. Drought. Is. Over.
After 53 agonizingly long years of waiting, the New York Knicks are NBA champions again.
What a run. What a team. And what a surely epic celebration to come.
Except, maybe, for the front office decision-makers who are almost immediately tasked now with trying to defend their crown. While the storybook script would keep this entire group together for a chance to run it back, the business of basketball almost always gets in the way.
And, who knows, maybe the front office feels like there's an upgrade available who'd be worth some boat-rocking changes to this core.
We'll consider everything from internet-breaking blockbusters to fine-tuned moves around the margins while identifying the top three targets on New York's summer wish list.
3. Daniel Gafford, Dallas Mavericks
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The Knicks will likely give some attention to the center spot this summer. Unrestricted free agency awaits Mitchell Robinson, and Karl-Anthony Towns previoulsy popped up in trade talks.
If Robinson winds up walking, New York will need someone to assume his rim-running role. Gafford has long thrived in that exact role.
He's a tireless worker on the interior. He rebounds. He challenges shots. He sets solid screens. And he's smart enough to recognize his offensive limitations, so he'll sprint into the scoring chances others create for him, either diving to the rim off pick-and-rolls or even motoring ahead in transition.
He isn't quite as freakish in his size-plus-hops blend as Robinson, but the impact could feel pretty similar.
2. Jabari Smith Jr., Houston Rockets
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If the Knicks make major moves that don't involve Karl-Anthony Towns, they could wind up sacrificing a high-priced forward. And if they do, they might want to solidify that spot with Smith, a highly versatile defender whose low-maintenance offense should be an easy fit with New York's primary creators.
Or maybe they move Towns, entrust Robinson with the starting role and seek out a big forward who can toggle between the 4 and 5 spots. That's another path that could lead back to Smith.
The Rockets might want more point production than they've received from the No. 3 pick of the 2022 draft, while the Knicks might feel they have enough scoring punch to withstand any of his limitations on that front. As long as he's spacing the floor on offense and causing chaos on defense, he'd be acing the support role New York earmarked for him.
Not to mention, a core this costly could (and likely would) welcome the addition of a younger player with obvious growth potential. Smith might feel fairly cemented into his archetype, but this was only his age-22 season, so it's impossible to think his game is done growing.
1. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks
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This is far from the first link to be made between Antetokounmpo and New York, but if one of the best players on the planet makes you a preferred destination, you have to at least entertain the idea, right?
Don't hold Antetokounmpo's inability to elevate this season's Bucks against him. He was his typically awesome self—career-high plus-14.4 net differential, per Basketball-Reference—but his supporting cast wilted around him.
Save for some injury concerns, nothing that happened this season should detract from the belief he's still capable of leading a title run.
It would take some heavy-lifting by the 'Bockers to make this happen, but the chance to acquire a player of this caliber doesn't come around often. And if anyone is worth that kind of burden, it's probably a two-time MVP and former Finals MVP who remains one of the most powerful two-way forces on the planet.
