It appears as if the New York Knicks are unwilling to include any significant players in trade discussions surrounding Donovan Mitchell. As many fans should be aware, Mitchell is an NBA star currently playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers. After having joined the team in their post-LeBron James era, Mitchell managed to help the team make the playoffs in his first year.
Another team in the Eastern Conference that has been making some discrete moves would be the New York Knicks. Fans will be able to recall that the Knicks managed to acquire Jalen Brunson as well as Josh Hart and other stars in order to turn themselves into playoff contenders.
Although Mitchell has been playing quite well for the Cavs, his name has suddenly entered trade discussions with some connections to the New York Knicks. While adding Spida to their roster would certainly help the Knicks go deeper into the playoffs, recent reports reveal that the team is not willing to give up a great deal in order to acquire Mitchell. That said, let us take a closer look and find out more.
The New York Knicks will not include Quentin Grimes to land Donovan Michell
Over the past few seasons, Julius Randle has been the player on the New York Knicks who has been frequently involved in trade discussions. After all, he and Brunson are the clear-cut best players on the team, and moving on from one of them could allow for quite a lot of change.
However, it turns out that the Knicks are unwilling to even give up Quentin Grimes, let alone Julius Randle, in order to land Donovan Mitchell from the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Knicks reportedly made Quentin Grimes untouchable in trade negotiations for Donovan Mitchell, per @SbondyNBA
(Via https://t.co/eH3xw0LzKB) pic.twitter.com/2eyzMXVMJK
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) December 7, 2023
To fans who do not know much about Grimes, he has been in the league since 2022 and is averaging 5.8 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists for the Knicks this season.
Given that these numbers are far below what Mitchell averages, one might wonder why the Knicks want to hold onto Grimes and their aspirations for this season.Can the Knicks make the playoffs once again this season?
Some fans could claim that the Knicks are unwilling to seriously engage in trade discussions for Mitchell due to the recent rivalry between both sides. After all, the Knicks eliminated the Cavs in the first round of the playoffs last season. Therefore, one might be able to argue that they are the better team and have higher expectations for this season.
At the moment, the New York Knicks hold a record of 12 wins and 8 losses. That would give them the 5th position in the Eastern Conference if the season ended today. Based on how this season has gone so far, it would be a safe bet to predict that the Knicks will be able to make the playoffs once again this season.
