The New York Knicks won’t have the chance to trade for Houston Rockets standout center Alperen Sengun this summer.
As Will of Bradeaux and Will shared on X, Houston’s general manager Rafael Stone came out last weekend and shot down all rumors of the franchise entertaining trade offers for the Turkish five man (h/t Jeremy Brener of Athlon Sports’ Inside the Rockets):
“Alpi’s gonna be with us next year. We get calls on all our young guys. We have no interest in moving him,” Stone said.
Knicks: Alperen Sengun will remain in Houston as a Rockets cornerstone
Cut and dry, the Rockets have a good thing going with Sengun spearheading their young core alongside Jalen Green and Jabari Smith Jr. and believe that he can help them climb out of their current rebuild as he reaches his ceiling.
The Knicks would have been well off with his versatile game though. The 6-11 center put up 21.1 points a game on 15.6 shots per night. He finished second among all centers last season averaging five assists and with two triple-doubles posted. He also finished second in the center class with 1.2 steals per contest.
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Knicks may not have had space for Sengun to shine with his desired usage rate
While Sengun is able to wear many hats on the basketball floor, the Knicks have had a recipe for success that consists of energetic, screen-setting centers that crash the boards and protect the rim. Sengun is more of a finesse player than a center who does the dirty work for a team. Additionally, his career is on the upswing and he could be looking to make a jump to All-Star contention next season.
Had the 21-year-old found his way to Madison Square Garden, he would’ve had to share the ball with Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby, and Julius Randle, three of whom are 20-plus point-per-game scorers themselves and a fourth in Anunoby who could reach that level at the drop of a dime with an increased workload. Sengun may have been too big of a mouth to feed in the grand scheme of things.
