Piece by: Thomas DeMeo
It's happening again. The trade rumors for star players joining the New York Knicks have become as guaranteed as death and taxes in the world of basketball. It doesn't matter that all these "reports" have clearly never become reality. New York is right next to Los Angeles as the biggest market in sports, so naturally people will assume players want to be there strictly based on potential profit and not care about the current team situation. Obviously that hasn't exactly worked out for the Knicks.
But this year has been different. According to another "inside source", the Knicks resurgence has made them a desirable team to play for again. This does make sense, no player wants to come in and have to carry a team like LeBron James in Cleveland, they want at the very least a competent supporting cast. And this year the Knicks have proven to be at the very least a playoff team, with (aside from Julius Randle) no real star power.
That brings us to the newest potential star joining the Knicks, Damian Lillard. The face of the Portland Trail Blazers has received criticism for his lack of contending and told that his loyalty is actually hurting his legacy. I don't agree with those claims, Lillard is clearly a future hall of famer, who I imagine is loved by the whole city of Portland and will be remembered with or without a championship.
He has said on countless occasions and even turned down contracts from contenders like the Lakers because he just loves where he is. In that respect I don't see him being traded by his own choice. The only way I see Lillard leaving is the Trail Blazers pulling a Sam Hinkie and blowing the roster up because they don't see the current core as a real threat. For this article's sake let's pretend that's the plan and the pros and cons from the Knicks perspective.
First how would this happen. The Knicks do have the cap space for Lillard's max contract, but naturally if Portland enters rebuild mode they're gonna want draft picks and/or young talent. Realistically speaking the Knicks would have to give up at least three to four first round picks and a young asset, whether it be Quickly, Toppin, or potentially Mitchell Robinson (the Knicks were very clear about not giving up Barret).
That package is not bad, it's perfectly reasonable based on the ability and fame of Lillard, but that would put the just now competitive Knicks in a win now mode, with no room for failure. This brings us to the pros and cons of this hypothetical deal.
The Pros
- It's pretty easy to say that Damian Lillard would give the Knicks a true superstar and leader. It would be the first time the Knicks point guard position would be set without controversy and outstanding offensive production.
- Lillard has tremendous playoff experience, while never being a true contender Lillard's Blazers were always competitive against the best teams in the West, even making a conference finals one year. The current Knicks roster has very little playoff experience (with the exception of Rose and Gibson from their Bulls years) and I could see Lillard being there to inspire the team.
- A potential solid big three with Lillard, Randle, Barett. Lillard will obviously be the main focus, but Barett will get plenty of looks being the new CJ McCollum, and if Randle stays healthy Lillard will have essentially a younger, LaMarcus Aldridge in the paint.
The Cons
- The current Knicks team has put a great emphasis on defense, something Lillard has not been the greatest at over his career. Maybe he could improve with good coaching and schemes, but that will be left up in the air.
- As mentioned before the Knicks would be going all in. They'd be losing out on a lot of future prospects and if this team fails, they'd be right back where they were before this season.
- Lillard has a massive contract, not saying he's not worth it, but it would leave the Knicks very little room to sign depth players to fill out the roster.
- This is a big and kinda weird one, but the Knicks are just starting to get good again, they've come out of nowhere to be a serious threat in the league, that being said, a lot of this team is still young and inexperienced. Going all in now, could put a lot of pressure on the players and everyone in the organization. I almost feel like they would just be going back to their old ways, signing a big star and promising a contender every year. Remember Carmelo Anthony?
If you couldn't tell I'm not a big fan of this idea. I get it, a big risk, but a potentially huge reward. But in my opinion this team is not ready to go all in yet. Randle and Barrett are fine, but the center position is still up in the air with Noel entering free agency and Robinson's recent injury history. Same with the small forward spot, Knox has not developed and Reggie Bullock is decent to solid at best.
I'd honestly like to see them build up the core a bit more before making such a big move. Also I have not ever been a huge fan of trading for star players for the reason listed above. If a free agent signing fails or under performs, yeah it sucks but at least you have a future in picks and young talent. Trading for a star though is like investing all your money in dogecoin and hoping it all works out. Look at the Nets a few years back, went all in on Garnett and Pierce, got nowhere, and missed out on now Boston all stars, Tatum and Brown. The Clippers are now in the same boat. If Paul George and Kawhi Leonard don't pull through the team will never live it down.
All in all, I hope the Knicks are more patient in their process and think long term as opposed to immediate satisfaction. They just started turning the corner and I would hate to see them ruin themselves so fast. It took them so long to start doing it right and I'm begging for them not to go ring chasing every year again, with or without the talent.