New York Knicks should trade the third overall pick
By Mike Marrano
The Atlanta scenario
There have been reports that the Knicks are interested in trading the third overall pick to the Atlanta Hawks for the eighth and 10th overall picks. A deal like that would give them two players that would compliment the high-end free agents they are going to shoot for in the summer, such as Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
The Knicks have room for two max contracts, adding two top ten picks to compliment them would greatly help. It will also save them money to have two top ten picks on rookie contracts filling out the rest of the roster, not to mention Kevin Knox, Mitchell Robinson, and Dennis Smith Jr. This is a deep draft, there are plenty of excellent players on the next tier of prospects starting at number four overall.
One player that might fall to that eighth spot would be Barrett’s former college teammate, Cam Reddish. The 6-8 Blue Devils forward averaged 13.5 points with 3.7 rebounds and 1.9 assists. Some may have thought Reddish would have had a bigger role on Coach K’s team but he shared the floor with Barrett and Williamson, who took over the spotlight most of the time.
His 7-1 wingspan makes him a threat as a rim protector and rebounder. With concerns of Reddish taking a back seat for guys like Barrett and Williamson, playing for New York could give him the spotlight to showcase more of his skills, even with the possibility of Irving and Durant playing here.
There are other players the New York Knicks can go for such as one of the Gonzaga players, Brandon Clarke or Rui Hachimura, or even shooting guard Coby White, from North Carolina, all three are projected to be in the top 10 of the first round. If Knicks GM Scott Perry can follow through and land big stars, it could boost the development of these players, which in turn could increase the progression this team is desperately trying to make.
If they do not want to go that route however, there are still options for this team to make a big impact.