The New York Knicks are being sharply criticized for seemingly rushing into trading star young forward Kristaps Porzingis to the Dallas Mavericks this past week.
New York didn’t necessarily get the haul indicative of Porzingis’ otherworldly talent by ending up with headliners such as Dennis Smith Jr. and DeAndre Jordan.
Immediately after the shocking trade was announced, one report suggested that other teams were surprised the Knicks made Porzingis available in trade talks.
Porzingis fallout: Some bewilderment coming from several teams who were shocked Porzingis was available. Becoming very clear the Knicks did little in the way of league-wide canvassing for offers before moving KP to Dallas.
— Chris Mannix (@SIChrisMannix) February 2, 2019
In an attempt to counter said report ahead of Sunday’s game against the Memphis Grizzlies, Knicks president Steve Mills said that the team had as many as eight trade offers for the Unicorn.
On Knicks TV, president Steve Mills said the Knicks had as many as eight possibilities for Kristaps deals.
— Michael Gallagher (@MikeSGallagher) February 3, 2019
This could be nothing more than damage control from the Knicks’ brass. Sure saving a ton of money against the cap could help the team land two stars this summer. Adding multiple first-round picks could also expedite New York’s rebuild.
Even then, it seems that the Knicks sold Porzingis for pennies on the dollar. If they had seven other offers, one now has to wonder if Mills and Co. took the best deal.