NBA Trade Rumors: Knicks Offered Kristaps Porzingis to Kings for De'Aaron Fox
March 26, 2019
Before trading him to the Dallas Mavericks, the New York Knicks reportedly offered big man Kristaps Porzingis to the Sacramento Kings for guard De'Aaron Fox.
According to ESPN.com's Zach Lowe, the deal would have required the Kings to send additional pieces to New York, take on unwanted salary or both, but the main portion of the trade would have been Porzingis for Fox.
Sacramento decided against the deal, and that decision has seemingly paid dividends thus far, as Fox is enjoying a breakout season with averages of 17.4 points, 7.2 assists, 3.8 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game.
Sacramento reportedly received multiple offers from teams for Fox since the Kings owned the No. 2 overall pick in the 2018 NBA draft and had a chance to select Luka Doncic as their new floor general. Instead, the Kings went with forward Marvin Bagley III, while Doncic landed with the Mavericks and has arguably established himself as the leading Rookie of the Year candidate.
Fox struggled at times as a rookie with averages of 11.6 points, 4.4 assists and 2.8 rebounds, while shooting just 41.2 percent from the field, but he took a significant leap forward this season and is a big reason why Sacramento has performed beyond expectations with a 36-37 record.
Ironically, Doncic will get a chance to join forces with Porzingis anyway, but it will be in Dallas rather than Sacramento.
The Mavs sent Dennis Smith Jr., DeAndre Jordan, Wesley Matthews and first-round picks in 2021 and 2023 to the Knicks for the 23-year-old Porzingis, Tim Hardaway Jr., Courtney Lee and Trey Burke in January.
Porzingis missed all of 2018-19 after tearing his ACL last season, but he has shown flashes of being an elite player during his brief NBA career.
In 2017-18, Porzingis averaged 22.7 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.4 blocks in 48 games before suffering the knee injury. He was named an All-Star for the first time and looked like he would be the Knicks' franchise cornerstone for years to come.
Instead, Porzingis and Doncic will attempt to get the Mavs back into the Western Conference's elite ranks, as they have missed the playoffs in each of the past three seasons.
The Kings have a talented core in their own right with Fox, Bagley and Buddy Hield leading the way.
Considering the trade that reportedly could have been, it is likely that the Kings and Mavericks will be compared to each other for years to come as they both attempt to return to relevancy in the Western Conference.