New York Knicks: Trades that could land Zach LaVine

First Trade Scenario

In this trade proposal, the Knicks would offer Julius Randle, Kevin Knox, and either one or two draft picks. The Bulls in return would send Zach LaVine and Cristiano Felicio.

Bulls acquisition

Based on salary, the Knicks could trade Julius Randle (a salary to match LaVine), which would help limit the number of players the Knicks would have to offer. Randle would be a solid bench player behind Markkanen and Carter at either power forward or center. He is more polished in the paint than any one of those two players and would provide a strong post presence that the Bulls are missing.

However, although their salaries are comparable Randle may be less attractive to the Bulls since they have a plethora of power forwards and centers. The Bulls do have Thaddeus Young, Lauri Markkanen, Wendell Carter Jr., Daniel Gafford, and Luke Kornet (I would name Christian Felicio, but he is in this trade). If the Bulls did decide to take Randle, they would have to move some of their frontcourt players to utilize him and not overspend at that position.

In addition to Randle, the Knicks could offer Knox because the Bulls would probably want a young player with some upside (cue the eye rolls). Knox is still a question mark because of his down season, but there is some potential hidden in him.

As coach Calipari says about Knox, he needs about three years to develop to become a contributor in the league. Well, this would be his third year, so the Bulls would be able to determine if Knox has made any improvements. Yet, they would probably extend his rookie contract for one more year to give him another year in their system.

The Knicks proposal would also contain a pick (or two) to help make the trade palatable for the Bulls. Randle and Knox are not players that teams are outright seeking. The Knicks would have to offer some combination of their own pick (top 10 protected), the Clippers 2020 pick, or the Mavericks 2021 pick.

Knicks acquisition

The Bulls would give up Zach Lavine, a player that they have not been able to fully utilize.

Christian Felicio would be added to the trade to help match Knox’s salary along with the acquisition of Randle. As I mentioned, the Bulls have a plethora of big men, so taking Randle in the trade would allow the Bulls to offload a big. Also, Felicio is on an expiring contract (like LaVine), so it may be beneficial to trade him if the Bulls don’t intend to retain him.