If it wasn’t obvious already, it is now. The New York Knicks are big-time sellers at the NBA trade deadline, which comes on Thursday.
In a whirlwind 15 hours, the Knicks have lost All-Star Kristaps Porzingis for the season due to a torn ACL and traded away young center Willy Hernangomez to the Charlotte Hornets for Johnny O’Bryant and two second-round draft picks.
They’re not done, either.
League executives have told Ian Begley of ESPN New York that the Knicks are still taking calls for center Kyle O’Quinn and guard Courtney Lee, as well as center Joakim Noah. Granted, Noah’s monster contract and off-court issues will make him a tough sell.
O’Quinn, like Hernangomez and starting center Enes Kanter, has generated plenty of buzz on the trade market as teams have been inquiring about New York’s big men for the better part of the last two weeks. The Warriors were one of the most notable teams interested in O’Quinn.
Now in his sixth NBA season, he has become a fan favorite at Madison Square Garden as his high-energy play off the bench earned him the main backup role behind Kanter, which forced Herangomez’s playing time to dwindle near nothing, prompting a trade request that was answered by the Knicks earlier on Wednesday.
Lee is in the midst of putting up a career year, averaging 13.3 points per game while shooting nearly 42 percent from three-point range. While he’s signed through the 2019-20 season, his availability on the market could be showing the Knicks’ true intentions, though it might be rash to start throwing the word “tank” around.
Granted, the idea of selling Lee while his value is highest could only help the Knicks assemble future assets to help build the team, especially if they have a high lottery pick.
That’s a very real possibility now without Porzingis as the rest of New York’s 2017-18 campaign will likely be a brutal one.
