Empire Writes Back
Fansided

New York Knicks: 5 deals that would make them instant contenders

By James Kattato

WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 05: DeMar DeRozan #10 of the San Antonio Spurs dribbles in front of Bradley Beal #3 of the Washington Wizards during the first half at Capital One Arena on April 05, 2019 in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 05: DeMar DeRozan #10 of the San Antonio Spurs dribbles in front of Bradley Beal #3 of the Washington Wizards during the first half at Capital One Arena on April 05, 2019 in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 6
Next
Andrew Wiggins, Minnesota Timberwolves. New York Knicks. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
Andrew Wiggins, Minnesota Timberwolves. New York Knicks. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /

Andrew Wiggins to the Knicks

This trade out of the rest of them should be the one that requires the Knicks to give up the least and gain the most in return. Andrew Wiggins’ contract is massive, but his stock is definitely low and he’s highly attainable at the moment. People tend to give Wiggins a hard time because of his lack of ability to take over games in Minnesota, but that might not be the best system for him to begin with.

The Timberwolves were very adamant about building around Karl Anthony Towns, who was a guy that they drafted and it’s paid off for them. KAT has been the 20 and 10 guy that the T-Wolves have expected him to be. He’ll be an All-NBA talent until he retires, but that definitely hurts Wiggins more than it helps him. Not to mention, when his role started to increase with the Wolves, Tom Thibodeau was picked up as the team’s head coach.

This wasn’t the worst thing for Wiggins, but I don’t think Thib’s coaching style necessarily fits the way he plays. He’s an athletic scorer who can beat opponents off the dribble and does well in the post. Not being able to showcase what he does best as Minnesota’s second option can definitely hurt as well, but he hasn’t been a bad ‘next guy up’ by any means.

Playing the second or sometimes even third option, Wiggins has been able to average 19.4 PPG over his career so he would definitely give the New York Knicks a scoring boost. One thing NYK fans could look at is that Wiggins is only 24-years-old and besides the offensive production, he’s been incredibly durable throughout his entire career.

In his five seasons as a pro, he’s only missed ten total games and nine of them were from this past season. The expectations for this kid were just way too high coming into the league. He’s obviously been a productive pro and maybe fans in Minnesota just expected too much out of him.

With the Knicks, Wiggins would have an opportunity for a fresh start and showcase his offensive ability as one of their leading guys on the court. I get it, he needs to work on his three-point shooting, but not a lot of players have it figured out by 24.

David Fizdale can definitely get the most out of Wiggins on both ends if he’s lucky enough to end up with such a talented player. His offensive scheme thrives from constant movement by the players on and off the ball. This could help the small forward find his way into the paint and use his athletic style to get him easy buckets. That is the strongest area of Wiggins’ game as he shoots over 50 percent from zero to ten feet from the basket which isn’t too bad for a non-seven-footer.

Like Booker, a change a scenery would be a great move for Wiggins career. He could easily make an All-Star jump after a move to Manhattan.

Home/New York Knicks