Two questions loom large. Why this trade? Why now? I don’t like either answer.
Why would NYK’s president Leon Rose give up RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley, and a 2024 second-round pick to the Toronto Raptors for O.G. Anounby, Precious Achiwua, and Malachi Flynn? Anounby is the undeniable centerpiece of this trade, and the hope is that he’ll join Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle to form a Big Three that can propel the Knicks to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Really?
If it were Tim Connelly or Pat Riley making the trade, I would give the Knicks the benefit of the doubt. But it was Rose who made the move. Based on his body of work as the president of basketball operations and his failure to identify talent, it should raise questions, and there’s no bigger question than this: Why would Anounby improve New York to champion contender status when he couldn’t elevate the Raptors?
That said, Barrett and Quickley won’t be missed in New York. Both were erratic and inconsistent. Still, if the Knicks had not lost to the Thunder (Wed) and Magic (Fri), would the NYKs have made this move? I don’t think so. Besides that, Rose is known for being patient and methodical, but now, all of a sudden, he makes this trade. It doesn’t add up. One can’t help but wonder whether impulsive owner James Dolan had a strong hand in this. Dolan wants this franchise to be in the Conference Finals, and he knows that won’t happen without player movement. But moving players for the sake of moving players doesn’t make sense, at least not on the face of it.
Rose’s supporters can argue that we shouldn’t focus on this deal only, that it’s a precursor to another deal, something bigger. But there’s no guarantee that it will happen. For example, it’s hard to imagine that the Cavaliers will give up Donovan Mitchell to the Knicks when Cleveland can get a better deal elsewhere…including in the NY metro area where the Nets have plenty of good young players available. The same can be said for the Hawks, who have Dejounte Murray. What assets can the Knicks offer to make a big deal unless they are ready to trade Julius Randle?
It’s no secret the Knicks need to get a dynamic player who can take them to the Eastern Conference Finals. To do that, the NYKs should have made a move in the off-season for MVP candidate Karl-Anthony Towns, whom the Timberwolves made available. But Rose and Executive VP William Wesley didn’t think the trade price was worth it.
Instead, they settled for a second-best proposition. What did they get? Aunonby is definitely a competent defender, which Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau loves. But what about his offense? I’ve seen good defenders shut him down. As for Achiwua and Flynn, the hope is that both will become productive players in New York, but that’s something neither did in We the North.
If Knicks fans want to be excited over this deal, by my guest. But this seems like a deal Isiah Thomas and other failed Knicks executives would make. Ultimately, I think the Aunonby deal will turn out to be great or awful, and you know where I think things will likely settle.
