The New York Knicks might be making some big changes this offseason. After going all-in with the Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns trades, the expectations were sky high. Unfortunately, the team fell just short of the 2024-25 NBA Finals. Now, murmurs of Knicks trade rumors have already started. Karl-Anthony Towns' trade rumors may be at the center of many NBA trade machine experiments this summer, so let's look at one bold option.
Reasons for the Karl-Anthony Towns trade rumors stem mainly from the All-NBA star’s defensive limitations. Recent reports have come out that some people within the Knicks organization were frustrated with Towns' defensive effort.
A potential suitor in a Towns trade this offseason could be the Dallas Mavericks.
The Mavericks have shown that not only are they willing to make bold trades, but they are desperate to win now.
After shipping Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Mavericks restructured their team around Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving. However, now that Irving is out with a knee injury, the Mavericks will need to be creative to keep themselves in contention in the West.
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That is where this Mavericks-Knicks trade idea comes in.
Here is the proposed NBA trade machine creation:
Mavericks receive: Karl-Anthony Towns and Cameron Payne
Knicks receive: Klay Thompson, PJ Washington, Daniel Gafford, and Naji Marshall.
In this Knicks trade idea, New York would rid themselves of Towns (and his huge contract) while picking up four solid rotation players. This trade could not only solve some of the Knicks' depth issues but would also be a huge upgrade on the defensive end.
The Mavericks, on the other hand, would get a perfect star to pair with Davis for the future. Because of Davis’ defensive excellence, pairing him with an offensive-minded stretch big like Towns could be a match made in heaven.
Dallas may be apprehensive to give up this much rotational depth just to get one star in return, but we’ve seen them make more ridiculous trades in the past.
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