The New York Knicks have been looking for a talent upgrade and an elite wing to put next to Jalen Brunson. The Toronto Raptors needed to do something because two of its stars — OG Anunoby and Pascal Siakam — are set to be free agents who could walk away at the end of this season.
The two sides found each other in a massive trade that will send Anunoby, Precious Achiuwa and Malachi Flynn to New York in exchange for RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley and a second-round pick, a story broken by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and confirmed a minute later by Shams Charania of The Athletic. It is now an official trade with both sides confirming the deal.
Oh my goodness….
— Immanuel Jaylen Quickley (@IQ_GodSon) December 30, 2023
The Knicks have had interest in Anunoby for more than a year — as has much of the league, seeing a young All-Star level two-way wing — and dangled Barrett to try and entice a trade last offseason, but the Raptors did not bite at the time. That may have worked for Toronto, who now have Barrett to slide into Anunoby’s wing slot plus get a Sixth Man of the Year but still underutilized player in Quickley to take over at the point next to the shot creator the Raptors want to rebuild around in Scottie Barnes.
Anunoby has a player option on his $19.9 million contract for next season and will use it because he is worth at least $12-$15 million more a season on the open market. The Knicks front office would not have made this trade without some off-the-record, wink-and-a-handshake agreement from Anunoby’s camp that he would re-sign in New York next summer (Anunoby cannot be extended at his market value under the terms of the CBA, he will become a free agent then sign). Decide for yourself if it’s a coincidence that Anunoby is represented by CAA, the agency Knicks president Leon Rose used to run.
Here are some quick thoughts on this trade.
• That is a massive haul for a trio of expiring contracts, another sign that there is some kind of expectation and understanding that Anunoby will be a Knick for more than half a season. He reportedly is open to a discount to stay in New York.
• New York gets an upgrade on the wing, a more efficient shooter and scorer who, most importantly, is an elite on-ball defender to match up against players such as Jayson Tatum, Donovan Mitchell and Tyrese Maxey in the East playoffs.
• Are the Pistons winners here? Desperate for a win, they face a Raptors team Saturday night on a back-to-back (and third game in four nights) that now will be without Anunoby and a little bit shocked by the move.
• Quickley will finally get the minutes Knicks fans have been begging to see him get, just not with their team. He will get the chance to prove he can be a starting point guard, and he and Barnes form a fearsome backcourt.
• Quentin Grimes, come on down. He is about to get his chance with increased minutes and workload.
• The Knicks are not done; they still have a boatload of first-round picks and tradable contracts to go after a superstar player, a true No. 1 option, if someone becomes available.
• Should Toronto have gotten a first-round pick in this trade? Is that a miss, or is a solid starter in Barrett plus Quickley enough?
• This trade comes while the Knicks are in the process of suing the Raptors over a former employee who went to Toronto and, according to the lawsuit, took “proprietary files” with him (he didn’t, this is all BS, but James Dolan and his lawsuits...). Does this count as some kind of settlement? Can we move on from this silliness?
