While there’s no guarantee the New York Knicks will make a move at the trade deadline on Thursday, they’re certainly rumored to be active. Whether they look to unload big contracts or acquire a legitimate talent who can boost their playoff chances is yet to be seen.
The Knicks have been connected to a myriad of players, ranging from De’Aaron Fox out of Sacramento or Goran Dragic from Toronto.
However, New York rekindled their interest in Indiana Pacers big man Myles Turner, a player they’ve had their eye out for quite some time.
Marc Berman of the New York Post reported that the Knicks are still pursing Turner, despite the Pacers trading away Damontis Sabonis to Sacramento:
Even though Pacers center Myles Turner is out with a stress reaction in his foot, the Knicks are still pursuing him with Thursday’s 3 p.m. trade deadline approaching, according to an NBA source.
Considering Indiana just traded away Sabonis, they may view Turner as a legitimate center for their future, but considering he’s dealing with a stress reaction in his foot, they could still sell high on him.
The last time Turner played was on January 14 against the Phoenix Suns in a loss. This season, he’s averaging 12.9 points, 7.1 rebounds, 2.8 blocks, and shooting 33.3% from range. In the modern-day NBA, having a scoring big man is essential, but the Knicks have gotten a lot out of Mitchell Robinson since the start of 2022.
In January, Robinson recorded 10.6 points, 9.1 rebounds, and about one block per game. In February, his numbers are even better, averaging 12.3 points per game and 14.3 rebounds over just three contests.
It is possible that the Knicks are looking to sell high on Robinson, gaining Turner back and injecting a unique talent into the starting five.
If New York were to strike a deal, they would also have to unload several big contracts to fit Turner’s contract into their salary space. Turner is currently on a four-year, $80 million deal with one year left. He will count $18 million next season, so the Knicks would have to include Nerlens Noel and potentially Alec Burks in the trade too. Otherwise, they could look to part ways with Evan Fournier and unload his contract, which is very similar in yearly salary.
Nonetheless, the trade deadline is boiling, but nothing has hit the fan just yet.