2020 Trade Targets for the New York Knicks – Damian Lillard and More

The NBA hopes to get things going and finish the 2019-20 season at some point in the not too distant future. The New York Knicks probably couldn’t care less.

Last time I checked the latest NBA Finals odds at the top basketball betting sites, New York wasn’t listed as an option.

A team stuck in never-ending dysfunction, the Knicks stand in at 21-45 and will be crossing their fingers that they can land a top-three pick in the 2020 NBA Draft.

That’s one option. The other is to send that lottery pick packing and/or swing trades to improve their prospects on the fly. Or they can just blow up their current roster and try to lure some big free agents into town.

The trade market could certainly help them, though. To get an idea of what they could do, let’s take a look at the top trade targets for the New York Knicks in 2020.

The Knicks could literally do anything involving a big star, and it’d be an improvement on their current roster.

Kevin Love is one name they should be attracted to, as he has a massive contract that the sinking Cavs wouldn’t mind unloading.

Love can still produce as a rebounder and scorer. As part of a rebuilding team, he could help the Knicks be considerably more competitive.

The best part is that it may not take that much to get him. New York could package Julius Randle and Taj Gibson to make the money work while adding Mitchell Robinson to sweeten the deal.

With Tristan Thompson leaving town and Andre Drummond either opting out or hitting the trade block, this is a deal that works for both sides.

This one is wild, but it’s the Knicks, so let’s get weird. It goes without saying that their lottery pick would need to be included here and that they’d have to fork over some big salaries to make it work financially.

But Dame has done all he could for Portland. The Blazers regressed this past year, and barring some major moves on the Blazers’ behalf, he may have reached his ceiling with the team.

Assuming the Blazers listen to trade offers, the Knicks could be an interesting team to deal with. They still don’t have a point guard they can trust, and landing Lillard could be the start of this franchise being reborn.

A deal involving Julius Randle, Elfrid Payton, Frank Ntilikina, and New York’s first-rounder could potentially work.

The story is similar here. CP3 is content riding out the final years of his crazy contract (and why wouldn’t he be?), while he’s actually helping OKC contend for the playoffs right now.

The Thunder will eventually want to start over, however, both to unload his unsightly contract and also to simply rebuild. When they’re ready to pull the trigger, they could help the Knicks hit the reset button at the same time.

This deal is similar to Lillard’s, although it wouldn’t require that lottery pick. It certainly would cost more in terms of bodies, though.

To make the finances work, the Knicks could offer Julius Randle, Taj Gibson, and Elfrid Payton. Kevin Knox, a talented youngster they’ve soured on, could be the final piece to match the money and give the Thunder incentive to make the deal.

If OKC fancies the likes of Dennis Smith Jr., Mitchell Robinson, or Frank Ntilikina, they can tack on the contracts of Terrance Ferguson and Darius Bazley to pry a little more value from New York.

This deal would involve that lottery pick, plus whatever else the Knicks can part with. It may not come just yet, but there has been writing on the wall that Joel Embiid won’t finish his career with the 76ers.

Philly not really being a threat to win the NBA Finals during his career is one reason why. If the Sixers get an offer they can’t refuse, it’s not crazy to think they just dump Embiid and either slide Al Horford to the five or let whatever new pieces they bring in replace him.

This Knicks trade could net them an elite prospect to work with (James Wiseman, anyone?), while the Knicks would also be forking over useful veterans like Julius Randle, Elfrid Payton, and Reggie Bullock.

Losing Embiid would hurt, but this move would effectively replace Philly’s departing depth and give them a versatile forward that could spend some time at center.

New York, meanwhile, gets one of the best franchise cornerstones imaginable as they look to rebuild in a hurry.

If I’m the Knicks, I want all of these trades. Embiid is probably the white whale of choice, but Lillard would also fix them at the point guard position.

It’s very possible everyone mentioned above is out of their reach, but all of these stars are in precarious positions. If the Knicks dangle what eventually amounts to a top-three pick, most of these teams will at least entertain the thought.

The major issue with New York is nobody really wants to deal with them. It’d be good for the NBA if they lucked their way into superstars like this, but accurately predicting that type of trade could prove difficult.