Anthony Davis Should Be the Knicks’ No. 1 Trade Target
Call me crazy, but Anthony Davis is what the Knicks need right now.
At 7-7, things could be worse for the Knicks. But they are just about one of the most bland teams in basketball right now. And you know the reason why: BECAUSE THEY HAVE NO STAR! If I’ve said it once, I’ll say it a thousand times.
They got ridiculously close to getting Donovan Mitchell before the Cavaliers came in with a better offer. No one can seem to forget the 2019 offseason where a Big 3 of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Zion Williamson vanished into thin air. However, a trade for Davis would somewhat rectify the recent past. The roster as currently constructed is a great supporting cast at most.
If the Lakers are actually serious about tearing it all down, then the Knicks need to call Rob Pelinka. The first major reason is obvious. When healthy, Davis is easily one of the best two-way players in the world. You would also have a hard time coming up with five big men you would rather have than him. However, I have a bit of a more nuanced reason why: the Knicks would be making a substantial upgrade at the power forward position
The elephant in the room
Julius Randle has completely lost it. He should have been sent out of town yesterday. I will admit, I struggled to see that his 2020-21 season was a fluke year because of COVID-19. But he has more than clearly let that go to his head. He is now a painstakingly inconsistent player on the offensive end and nothing short of a headache on the defensive end.
As the season wears on, more and more Knicks fans have gotten fed up with him, like this one below:
A Davis trade kills two birds with one stone: not only does Randle get out of New York, but you finally accomplish the eternal mission of acquiring a superstar for the Knicks.
You may think I’m crazy, but Randle may actually help the Lakers in the short-term. Davis has historically been a below-average jump shooter, and things have taken a turn for the worse in recent years. However, Randle can somehow put together decent enough efficiency on very high volume.
Randle’s profile could translate into someone to give LeBron James less of an offensive workload as he completes his third decade of professional basketball. On the flipside, a starting five of Brunson–Barrett–Reddish-Davis-Hartenstein could potentially be a really good one.
Proposed Trade
How did I come to that conclusion? Well, here’s my prediction for a Davis trade if it ever happened:
NYK acquires F Anthony Davis | LAL acquires F Julius Randle, G Quentin Grimes, G Immanuel Quickley, C Mitchell Robinson, 2023 FRP (via Dallas), 2023 FRP (via New York), 2025 FRP (via New York) and a 2027 pick swap.
I think those pieces give LA some help both now in the future as they approach a rebuild. For New York, I wouldn’t be too upset seeing these guys out the door. Grimes could potentially be a long-term starting SG in LA while Quickley seems like a great spark plug off the bench. Robinson gives them a traditional big-man they have long been lacking. As previously mentioned, Randle could give them some help on the offensive end as Davis’ replacement. He could also be motivated to be back in LA and win over the fans that he played in front of after being drafted in 2014. Of course, the Lakers were reportedly interested in Cam Reddish as well so that could potentially be a sticking point. Regardless, I will keep my fingers crossed that Anthony Davis becomes a Knick someday.
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