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5 potential disgruntled superstars Knicks could be monitoring for offseason trade
Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics. (Photo by Brian Fluharty/Getty Images) – New York Knicks
3: Jaylen Brown
Jaylen Brown is set to be an unrestricted free agent in 2024, but given his recent comments in a profile by The Ringer, it wouldn’t be that big of a shock if he requested a trade before then. It’d be risky for a team to trade for him with his looming free agency, but he’d still have multiple suitors.
The 26-year-old was named an All-Star for the second time earlier this season and is averaging a career-high 26.7 points as well as a career-high 6.9 rebounds. He’s shooting 49.2% from the floor, which is another career-high for him. He’s been instrumental to the Celtics’ success in recent seasons, but it seems as if Boston is at risk of losing him whether it be this summer or the next.
The Celtics were the top team in the East for the majority of the season but were recently replaced by the Bucks. Boston has been on a bit of a decline in recent weeks, but the Celtics could make it back to the NBA Finals for the second straight year. If that happens, that would likely help Boston’s case to keep Brown from wanting to go elsewhere.
But if Brown wants out of Boston before his contract comes to an end, New York will automatically emerge as a landing spot. It would be interesting to see how the Knicks’ rotation would change with a player like Brown, but he has too much talent for the front office to pass up.
!["New](https://dailyknicks.com/2023/03/26/5-potential-disgruntled-superstars-knicks-offseason-trade/3/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_2133,w_3200/https%3A%2F%2Fdailyknicks.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fimagn-images%2F2023%2F03%2F20299818.jpeg")
replaced with Quin Snyder</a>. The Hawks are currently in play-in range as they sit at No. 8 in the East, but that’s not where many expected the team would be after trading for Dejounte Murray last summer.</p>
<p>Similar to Miami, Atlanta has underperformed. Young will soon be wrapping up his fifth season with the Hawks after being the No. 5 pick in 2018. After making it to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2021, Atlanta was a first-round exit in 2022. If the Hawks are unable to make it past the play-in tournament this year, there will be even more speculation about Young’s future with the organization.</p>
<p>He’s a very ball-dominant guard, so it’s hard to envision him meshing with Julius Randle and Jalen Brunson. And is he the player that the Knicks have been waiting on? Regardless, New York will be considered a landing spot for Young if he does want out because of the first-round picks that the front office has accumulated. However, Jaylen Brown would be a much better fit for the Knicks than Trae Young.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #007BC1" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://dailyknicks.com/2023/03/26/5-potential-disgruntled-superstars-knicks-offseason-trade/3/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> A CAA client </a>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-141125" src=https://dailyknicks.com/2023/03/26/5-potential-disgruntled-superstars-knicks-offseason-trade/3/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_2014,w_3200/https%3A%2F%2Fdailyknicks.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2023%2F03%2F1440839806.jpeg" alt="New York Knicks, Minnesota Timberwolves, Karl-Anthony Towns" width="3200" height="2014" srcset="https://dailyknicks.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2023/03/1440839806.jpeg 3200w, https://dailyknicks.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2023/03/1440839806-768x483.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 3200px) 100vw, 3200px"><p class="wp-caption-text">Karl-Anthony Towns, Minnesota Timberwolves. (Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images) – New York Knicks</p>
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<h3>1: Karl-Anthony Towns</h3>
<p>Everyone knows how the Knicks feel about CAA clients. With Leon Rose at the top, Karl-Anthony Towns has been considered a possible target for a few years now. Like Zach LaVine and Jimmy Butler, he knows what it’s like to have Tom Thibodeau as a head coach.</p><div class="widget fs_ads"> <div class="fs_ad_widget-ad" style="margin:0 auto; width: 300px;"> <div class="fs-ll-ad" data-ad-type="minutemedia_slideshow_inline_300x250__desktop__tablet" data-vendor="minutemedia">
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<p>Towns has played in only 22 games this season after missing nearly four months with a calf injury. Before getting hurt, the 27-year-old was averaging 20.8 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 5.3 assists. <a href=https://dailyknicks.com/2023/03/26/5-potential-disgruntled-superstars-knicks-offseason-trade/3/"https://bleacherreport.com/articles/10069707-t-wolves-karl-anthony-towns-to-return-vs-hawks-out-since-nov-28-with-calf-injury" target="_blank" rel="noopener">KAT said</a> that before going down, he “felt the most complete as a player in my career.”</p>
<p>After the Timberwolves shocked the rest of the league by trading for Rudy Gobert during the offseason, many were left scratching their heads wondering how a Gobert-Towns lineup would work for Minnesota. At the beginning of the season, the Timberwolves struggled but have since climbed their way up to No. 7 in the West thanks to the strong play of Anthony Edwards. Still, Minnesota has a lot of work to do.</p>
<p>Towns signed a four-year, $224 million max extension last offseason that doesn’t kick in until 2024-25. He isn’t allowed to be traded until July 7. It’d be hard for the Knicks to pull a trade off if KAT decided that he no longer wanted to be in Minnesota. He’s wrapping up his eighth season in the league and all that he and the Timberwolves have to show for it is a first-round playoff exit.</p>
<p>New York already has a starting center in Mitchell Robinson who signed a four-year, $60 million deal in free agency last summer. However, his <a href=https://dailyknicks.com/2023/03/26/5-potential-disgruntled-superstars-knicks-offseason-trade/3/"https://dailyknicks.com/2023/03/23/knicks-mitchell-robinson-petty-message-team-twitter/">social media activity</a> has caused speculation that perhaps he truly believes he would be better off elsewhere. None of this is to say that Robinson wants a trade, or that the Knicks want to trade him, but he’s raised some eyebrows nonetheless.</p>
<p>If Towns decides that he wants to leave Minnesota before his new contract starts, New York will be circled as a potential landing spot.</p>
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