Knicks Linked to Warriors Trade

The New York Knicks could be looking to make a trade for a center in the second half of the offseason.

After losing Isaiah Hartenstein to the Oklahoma City Thunder in a three-year, $87 million deal, the Knicks are in need of replacing him with someone either in free agency or a trade. One player they could look at is Golden State Warriors big man Kevon Looney.

“The Warriors aren’t likely to be sellers in this market, but trading with the Knicks could net them extra ammo for pursuing one of their larger targets. Looney is a cleaner fit at the five for New York than Achiuwa, and Golden State can utilize both him and the picks going into next season,” SNY contributor David Vertsberger writes.

In a potential deal, Precious Achiuwa could agree to a sign-and-trade with the Knicks that would send him to the Warriors for Looney. Perhaps some overseas draft rights or late future draft picks could be involved in the deal, but Achiuwa for Looney is the main course of the trade.

Looney, 28, has spent his entire nine-year career with the Warriors after being drafted No. 30 overall in the 2015 NBA Draft out of UCLA. Looney was part of Golden State’s title teams in 2017, 2018 and 2022 while also making the NBA Finals in 2016 and 2019. This means that Looney has made the Finals in more seasons than he’s missed, giving him more playoff experience than mostly anyone in the NBA.

Looney’s rebounding abilities and defense would also be welcomed in New York’s second unit. He could be a safer option to that of Sims, who is young and unproven. While Looney’s ceiling may not be as high, the Knicks know what they can get out of him, which is why trading for him makes sense.

Ultimately, the Knicks get their center and only need to spend about $8 million this season on his salary, which is around the kind of money Hartenstein was making this past year.

It’s a deal that almost sounds too good to be true.

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