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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MAY 02: Julius Randle #30 of the New York Knicks (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
Trade package No. 1: Three-team deal to replace Julius Randle
Our final package will address the elephant in the room: can the New York Knicks really afford to pay Jalen Brunson, Bradley Beal and Julius Randle? For many Knicks fans, the answer is no. The Wizards don’t seem likely to value Randle in a trade as they enter a rebuild, but perhaps another team with a need at power forward could step into the trade:
Wizards Get
Chris Duarte, Jalen Smith
Daniel Theis, Evan Fournier
No. 26, 29 in 2023 Draft
2024 first-round picks (DAL, WAS)
Pacers Get
Julius Randle
Quentin Grimes
The Indiana Pacers! How about they add a pair of starters, with Randle solving their issues at power forward and Grimes becoming their starting 2, sliding Andrew Nembhard into a backup backcourt role. They give up a handful of solid but not elite assets, sending three role players and two late firsts to the Wizards.
Washington’s role here is the most suspect. They are essentially getting a charcuterie board full of mid-range assets. Do they like Jalen Smith’s upside? Do they believe in Chris Duarte as a future starter? The benefit is that this is all short-term salary, so they can move off of all of these players over the next two seasons. Four first-round picks, even if none are likely to fall in the lottery, does give them plenty of bites at the apple.
Meanwhile, the Knicks get off of Randle’s contract (as well as Fournier’s), at the cost of Grimes and a pair of future firsts. Is that swap worth it? Grimes is an excellent 3-and-D player, and if that’s all he becomes, the Knicks can survive replacing him, especially since the addition of Beal would sap many of his minutes. If he becomes something more, they may regret this deal.
All of these trades can be tweaked, but they represent three different paths the Knicks could take in trade negotiations. With plenty of teams tossing their hat into the ring for Bradley Beal, it’s no lock that the Knicks make the best offer — or any at all. But they certainly have plenty of options to pursue Beal or any other star that hits the market.
Brandon Ingram</a>, <a href=https://dailyknicks.com/2023/06/17/3-trade-packages-for-bradley-beal-to-juice-knicks-backcourt/3/"https://dailyknicks.com/2023/06/10/grade-trade-knicks-blow-up-roster-joel-embiid-barrett/">Joel Embiid</a>, <a href=https://dailyknicks.com/2023/06/17/3-trade-packages-for-bradley-beal-to-juice-knicks-backcourt/3/"https://dailyknicks.com/2023/06/13/chances-knicks-reuniting-kristaps-porzingis/">Kristaps Porzingis</a>, <a href=https://dailyknicks.com/2023/06/17/3-trade-packages-for-bradley-beal-to-juice-knicks-backcourt/3/"https://dailyknicks.com/2023/05/20/3-trade-packages-new-york-knicks-make-trae-young/">Trae Young</a> — the names continue to swirl.</p>
<h2>Can the Knicks go after Bradley Beal in an offseason trade?</h2>
<p>The latest name has hit the rumor mill hard, and that’s <a href=https://dailyknicks.com/2023/06/17/3-trade-packages-for-bradley-beal-to-juice-knicks-backcourt/3/"https://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/6580/bradley-beal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bradley Beal</a>. The former All-NBA guard is reportedly open to discussing a trade with Washington Wizards officials, with the hopes of finding a landing spot that’s amenable to both sides. Beal has a full no-trade clause, so he will have to approve of any deal directly.</p>
<p>Could the Knicks be on Beal’s list? And who would they need to give up to land him? It’s impossible to know what the going rate for overpriced stars is, as Beal is both very good and very expensive. Let’s look at three different kinds of trade constructions and see which would be best to land Beal in the Big Apple.</p>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-143909" src=https://dailyknicks.com/2023/06/17/3-trade-packages-for-bradley-beal-to-juice-knicks-backcourt/3/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_1706,w_2560/https%3A%2F%2Fdailyknicks.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2023%2F05%2F1239702213-scaled.jpeg" alt="New York Knicks, Evan Fournier" width="2560" height="1706" srcset="https://dailyknicks.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2023/05/1239702213-scaled.jpeg 2560w, https://dailyknicks.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2023/05/1239702213-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://dailyknicks.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2023/05/1239702213-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w, https://dailyknicks.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2023/05/1239702213-2048x1365.jpeg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px"><p class="wp-caption-text">Evan Fournier of New York Knicks (Photo by Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>Trade package No. 3: Giving Washington a true draft haul</h2>
<p>The New York Knicks have amassed a large collection of draft picks, with four extra firsts on top of their normal set of picks. That gives them a lot of ammunition in a deal. It could mean that they split up their young players and picks to make two separate trades to add big-name talent. The other path, however, is to use the picks for one big swing, commit to Julius Randle as their third star as well as their young depth to be the right players to see them to a championship.</p>
<p>In that scenario, the Wizards might be the team to target as they start their rebuild. Their cap space isn’t vital to them right now, and if the Knicks push enough draft picks into the middle of the table, the Wizards may take on empty salary to allow the Knicks to keep all of their depth. Here’s what that trade might look like:</p>
<div class="fs-shortcode" data-type="Trade" data-team-ids="[142,27]" data-team-gets='[["Derrick Rose","Evan Fournier","Isaiah Hartenstein","Five first-round picks"],["Bradley Beal"]]'> <div class="playertrade remove-native-227"> <div class="trade"> <div class="team a"> <div class="logo"><img src=https://dailyknicks.com/2023/06/17/3-trade-packages-for-bradley-beal-to-juice-knicks-backcourt/3/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/w_75,h_75,c_fill,g_auto,f_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.fansided.com%2Flogos%2Fnba%2Fwizards.png">
<div class="details"> <div class="team-name">Wizards Get</div> <div class="info">Derrick Rose</div> <div class="info">Evan Fournier</div> <div class="info">Isaiah Hartenstein</div> <div class="info">Five first-round picks</div> </div> </div> <div class="separator"></div> <div class="team b"> <div class="logo"><img src=https://dailyknicks.com/2023/06/17/3-trade-packages-for-bradley-beal-to-juice-knicks-backcourt/3/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/w_75,h_75,c_fill,g_auto,f_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.fansided.com%2Flogos%2Fnba%2Fknicks.png">
<div class="details"> <div class="team-name">Knicks Get</div> <div class="info">Bradley Beal</div> </div> </div> </div> </div>
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<p>The Knicks would opt into Derrick Rose’s contract for next season, which is a massive overpay but allows them to keep RJ Barrett, Julius Randle and Mitchell Robinson, one of whom would have to be in a Beal trade otherwise. Hartenstein is the only rotation player necessary, and with Jericho Sims in the wings, it isn’t much of a hit, especially with the free-agent market flush with veteran bigs.</p>
<p>The Knicks would have an insanely deep roster. Their backcourt would have Beal, Jalen Brunson, Immanuel Quickley, and Quentin Grimes; the frontcourt would retain Barrett, Randle, Obi Toppin and Robinson, and should be able to squeak Josh Hart back in under the tax apron. It’s a very expensive team moving forward, but it’s flush with the necessary talent.</p>
<p>For the Wizards, they effectively rent their cap space out to the Knicks and get off Beal’s contract, and in return get a whopping five first-round picks in return. That would naturally include their own protected 2024 first-rounder, as well as a pick each from Dallas, Detroit, Milwaukee and New York. It doesn’t give them a young player to hang their hat on, but now they get a number of shots at finding that player themselves.</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/2023/06/17/3-trade-packages-for-bradley-beal-to-juice-knicks-backcourt/3/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> Balance Beam </a>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-143254" src=https://dailyknicks.com/2023/06/17/3-trade-packages-for-bradley-beal-to-juice-knicks-backcourt/3/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_1706,w_2560/https%3A%2F%2Fdailyknicks.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2023%2F05%2F1488485910-scaled.jpeg" alt="New York Knicks, RJ Barrett" width="2560" height="1706" srcset="https://dailyknicks.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2023/05/1488485910-scaled.jpeg 2560w, https://dailyknicks.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2023/05/1488485910-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://dailyknicks.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2023/05/1488485910-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w, https://dailyknicks.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2023/05/1488485910-2048x1365.jpeg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px"><p class="wp-caption-text">MIAMI, FL – MAY 08: RJ Barrett #9 of the New York Knicks (Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>Trade package No. 2: Balanced package for Wizards</h2>
<p>Rather than backing up a dump truck of draft picks, the Knicks could instead offer a trade package that’s a bit more balanced. It utilizes their collection of talented young players to form a deal that could start the Wizards out in rebuilding their own young core, with a 2024 first thrown in to get it over the top.</p>
<div class="fs-shortcode" data-type="Trade" data-team-ids="[142,27]" data-team-gets='[["RJ Barrett","Obi Toppin","Isaiah Hartenstein, Miles McBride","2024 first-round pick (DAL)"],["Bradley Beal"]]'> <div class="playertrade remove-native-227"> <div class="trade"> <div class="team a"> <div class="logo"><img src=https://dailyknicks.com/2023/06/17/3-trade-packages-for-bradley-beal-to-juice-knicks-backcourt/3/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/w_75,h_75,c_fill,g_auto,f_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.fansided.com%2Flogos%2Fnba%2Fwizards.png">
