KNICKS KEEP EYES ON D’ANGELO
PAYTON SHINES IN OT WIN OVER CAVS
CLEVELAND — The Knicks had all three of their point guards available and healthy for Monday’s 139-134 overtime win over the Cavaliers.
And the trio all played well, led by Elfrid Payton’s tripledouble (17 points 15 assists, 11 rebounds). Dennis Smith Jr. being a spark off the bench (15 points, six assists) and Frank Ntilikina coming on late in a two-point-guard formation. The Frenchman hit a big late regulation 3-pointer, employed solid defense and finished with a plus-14.
Interim coach Mike Miller said he couldn’t have been more thrilled with his three point guards. But that doesn’t mean Knicks brass still isn’t looking elsewhere for its point guard of the future.
According to an NBA source, the Knicks are monitoring the availability of Warriors point guard and ex-Net D’Angelo Russell, who is on the trading block as Thursday’s trade deadline approaches.
According to the source, the Knicks are looking into several different trade scenarios, so there’s no indication about their chances of landing Russell and giving up their future cap space to him.
Russell signed with the Warriors in a sign-and-trade with the Nets last July — a four-year, $117 million deal. Russell stands to make $28.6 million next season, which would limit the Knicks’ cap-space flexibility in 2020. But with Julius Randle’s contract potentially expiring after the 2020-21 season, they would be in play for another max player in the summer of 2021 when Giannis Antetokounmpo hits the market.
The Timberwolves had been the top contenders to land Russell, but the San Francisco Chronicle reported the teams were at an impasse regarding a package centered around Andrew Wiggins. The report said the Warriors need the Wolves’ 2020 lottery pick and that Golden State will likely keep Russell.
The Knicks have the wherewithal to make a deal with their raft of expiring contracts (Payton, Bobby Portis, Allonzo Trier, Wayne Ellington), but reports say the Warriors likely want a 2020 first-round draft pick in any deal.
The top of this year’s draft isn’t considered super rich. However, according to an NBA source, the Knicks are adamant about not parting with this June’s lottery pick in any package. One report stated the Knicks would want to add a prospect, like Ntilikina, to any deal. Former Knicks president Phil Jackson and then-GM Steve Mills had Russell higher than Kristaps Porzingis on their draft board in 2015, but the Ohio State lefty playmaker was scooped up at No. 2 by the Lakers. Jackson is gone, but
Mills is now in charge.
Russell, named to the All-Star Game last season as a Net, is averaging 23.8 points and 6.3 assists for the woebegone Warriors. Sources believe Golden State is adamant about moving him for luxury-tax reasons — even if it hasn’t seen enough of Russell together with Stephen Curry. Curry played just four games before suffering a broken hand. Russell turns 24 this month.
Payton will be a free agent and, despite his triple-double in Cleveland in which he attacked the paint with abandon, hasn’t done enough to warrant being the Knicks’ starter for years to come.
Payton, Smith and Ntilikina are not considered good outside shooters. The Knicks are desperate for a star-caliber player, and Russell may fit that bill, though there’s debate about that within the front-office ranks.