New York Knicks Trade Primer

We're still two months away from the NBA's 2023 trade deadline (February 10th at 3 p.m. EST); however, this Thursday (December 15th) is considered the unofficial start of trade season. That's because players who signed new contracts this past offseason (a total of 74) become trade-eligible on that date, opening the floodgates of trade talks - and rumors. 

With so many teams floating around .500 this season, many GMs have tough decisions to make as we get ready to enter 2023: Do they want to be "buyers" or "sellers." Despite an underwhelming start to the 2022-23 campaign, the Knicks now find themselves a game over .500 and in a tie for the sixth seed in the East following a surprising four-game win streak.

Here's a look at how New York may look to reshuffle their roster over the next couple of months. 

• Players Most Likely To Get Dealt:

🏀 Evan Fournier:
Fournier started a team-high 80 games last season and canned a franchise record of 241 triples, smashing John Starks' previous mark of 217. The only players with more made 3-pointers in 2021-22 n were Stephen Curry, Buddy Hield and Fred VanVleet. However, Fournier didn't bring much to the table besides long-range bombs and, as expected, struggled on the defensive end. Those issues were glaring again this season, with New York being outscored by 48 points in the 260 minutes he logged over the first 13 games of the season. Consequently, Fournier was banished to the bench and has been a DNP-CD ever since, which has coincided with the Knicks' dramatic improvement on the defensive end.

Obviously, Fournier and the Knicks would prefer to part ways. With Quentin Grimes establishing himself as the team's starting shooting guard, Fournier is no longer a part of the Knicks' present or future. That said, the French sharpshooter could help a contender as an offensive spark plug off the bench. The issue is he's earning $18 million this season and will take home $18.9 million in 2023-24. As a result, New York will have a tough time ridding itself of that unfavorable contract. They will either be forced to attach draft capital or take back an equally unappealing pact to make it happen. The Los Angeles Lakers, in desperate need of long-range snipers, could make sense. Earlier this week, Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that LA has "discussed concepts involving New York's Cam Reddish and Evan Fournier."