The NY Knicks may consider trades this season with names like Iman Shumpert, JR Smith, Andrea Bargnani and Amar'e Stoudemire as potential players that could go, as Phil Jackson is hoping to clear out space to target free agents like Rajon Rondo, Greg Monroe, Marc Gasol or LaMarcus Aldridge in the summer of 2015 when New York has more to spend in free agency.
According to ESPN.com and Pro Basketball Talk, the Knicks have looked into the possibility of trading Stoudemire, but so far the team has not been able to find any takers because of his huge contract. The reports say that the team will try and offload Stoudemire to the Sixers at some point this season, as he has an expiring deal and they have more cap space than anyone else.
Earlier this offseason there were reports that the team was shopping Smith and Shumpert, but so far there has been no movement on those deals. Pablo Prigioni has also been shopped and that likely means that Shane Larkin is staying, as the Knicks see him as a solid reserve that can take over for Prigioni if he is traded. Larkin is much younger and is under team control and he potentially could be flipped at a later time.
The Knicks are not going to be a "great" team next season, but they already have a better roster than they had this past year. Jackson has done a solid job of making moves and now he has the chance to make more, as the NY Post reports that the Knicks will be looking at Rajon Rondo, Greg Monroe, Marc Gasol or LaMarcus Aldridge as free agents next summer if they hit the market. The team has moves to make and they will have money to spend next summer.
According to ESPN.com, the Knicks have looked at trading Smith this offseason and Ian Begley reports that the team would be willing to trade Shumpert to get a deal done. The report says that Tim Hardaway is off limits in trades, but that the Knicks would consider other deals to love salary like they did with Tyson Chandler and Raymond Felton to Dallas, which got the team Shane Larkin and Jose Calderon along with Samuel Dalembert.
Last season the Knicks started off with just three wins over their first stretch of 16 games and they cannot afford another open like that. Derek Fisher takes over as head coach despite having zero experience and he has the approval of Jackson as well as Anthony. Carmelo is a superstar player and an elite scorer and if the Knicks can get one or two complimentary pieces over the next couple years, the team should contend in the east even with LeBron in Cleveland.
The Knicks signed Jason Smith to help fortify the front court after trading Chandler and getting Samuel Dalembert and now they have Stoudemire as well as Andrea Bargnani. Smith is a solid bench or starter option and he comes in after averaging a strong 9.7 points, 5.8 rebounds and 0.9 blocks per game for the Pelicans and that is perfect production for his role with the Knicks.
