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The devil works hard, but the Knicks making a move that sends fans down a dark path and Woj dropping the bomb, works harder.
First off, my knee-jerk reaction back at noon... WOAH. I thought we all agreed, no work until the new year. That's how this holiday break goes. Leon Rose and the Knicks had other plans, especially after losing to the Magic. The Knicks needed a shakeup, and boy, did they do it.
I was and will always be an RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley fan. They were young, and talented, and brought glory back to the Knicks draft. Now, almost twelve hours later, I've read through the comments, and I've talked over the deal in my head. I like it, I don't love it, but it's a solid move.
In the eyes of a casual, or people who loved to rag on the Knicks, they think this was a total fleece job by Toronto. The jury is very much still out, but if you are paying attention, you know that isn't the case.
The Pros...
The Knicks have been linked to Anuoby for the past two seasons. The Raptors were asking for multiple first-round picks, and in terms of draft capital, they only gave up a high second. If you know the Knicks, they don't play their draft picks right off the bat, and in terms of trading pieces, they still hold all of their first-round chips.
It hurts to say, but Anunoby is a better player than Barrett. He is ready to slot in and excel on this team. He is everything the Knicks wanted and needed, RJ Barrett to be. He is an elite defender and constant three-point specialist. He's a 6-foot-7 wing who defends at an elite level and consistently makes 3-pointers.
This allows opportunities for Quentin Grimes (a good defender), and the Nova Boys (Hart and DiVincenzo) to excel.
Moving on from RJ allows the team some financial flexibility and better opportunities to build around Brunson and Randle. The same goes with Quickley, who is a terrific sixth man but gives the Knicks more room to make moves without financial constraint.
The Knicks keep all their future first-round picks. Great for maybe another big move?
The Cons...
The Knicks finally have developed a young core that they drafted. Trading Obi Toppin earlier this year stung. Mitchell Robinson's going down hurt this team tremendously. RJ and IQ were bright spots, Barrett was extended, and Quickley was slated to earn in the offseason, but the Knicks felt other directions were needed to make this team successful.
The lack of youth development is one thing, but moving on from Quickley stings. I wish the Knicks offered him the qualifying over the summer, or made this move without him, but that's business. Clearly, they weren't going to offer him this summer, as he is expected to command over $100M, so it's better to get something in return rather than let him walk for nothing.
The Knicks should have traded RJ and IQ for Donovan Mitchell last offseason, but c'est la vie.
This deal will be a bust if OG doesn't resign, but he has already come out and said he's willing to take a discount to build and be a Knick.
Final Verdict...
Was it confusing, yes. However, this should be a step in the right direction for the Knicks organization. In simple terms - they upgraded the wing position, moved on from a player that they overpaid and hasn't produced, traded a talented player that they didn't want to overpay this summer, and kept all of their first-round picks to deal for another star. In my book, that's a win.
Jalen Brunson is the cornerstone. Julius Randle deserves to lead and win on this team. OG Anunoby fits this team to a T. If the Knicks can add Donovan Mitchell or Dejounte Murray, plus another depth piece at the center position, watch out.
My Twitter Likes that sold me on this deal