Knicks Rumors: This Trade Package Could Land Star Power In New York

The New York Knicks are still looking for a superstar to take them over the top. They wanted Donovan Mitchell last year. They were linked to Joel Embiid earlier this year, and Karl Anthony-Towns is always a name that surfaces. 

The big question is do they have the assets to land a big star if one does indeed become available. According to Insider Adrian Wojnarowski, they're getting their ducks in a row:

“The Knicks have been preparing themselves with draft assets and the development of young players to make the kind of big trade necessary to move into the elite of the Eastern Conference and NBA,” said Woj recently.

Then there's still the matter of matching salaries in a trade, which is what Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report looks at, with his three-player package that, added to draft picks, just might be able to get it done. 

Pincus focuses on Donte DiVincenzo, Evan Fournier, and—gasp—Immanuel Quickley as a group that could work (in addition to picks) in a trade for a superstar.

The bigger salaries in the deal come from DiVincenzo and especially Fournier. The former signed a 4-year, $46.9M contract in the summer. That's an AAV of $11.7M, and he's been doing a nice job off the bench for the Knicks, hitting threes at a 44.4% clip. 

Add to that Fournier's $18.8M salary, and now you're at about about $30 Mill. But then we get to the "young, developing players" that Woj was talking about, and that's where Quickley comes in.

The 24-year-old combo guard is a young, rising star, and having another fine season off the Knicks' bench. But he becomes a restricted free agent after the season, and could be poached by another team, if the Knicks aren't willing to match his soaring price, and are still trying to save dollars for a true superstar addition. If he could be used to get one sooner, when one comes available, the Knicks might have to jump on it. 

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