Walsh May Trade Pick

by TKB Staff on May 30th, 2008 at 7:56 am

Marc Berman of the NY Post writes today that there is a possibility of the Knicks trading their first round pick. During a state of the union in Orlando Walsh was quoted as saying: “We’re going to look at every option. Trade it outright for a very good NBA player, trade back for multiple picks, or trade up. There’s a lot of different things you do. You explore everything.” Berman also points out how you could argue that picks 3 through 12 are very similar.

All along I have had this feeling that the Knicks will trade this pick. There seems to be no real “impact player” outside of Beasley and Rose. If OJ Mayo is the “best of the rest” that might not be the kind of risk this team wants to take. I am on record as saying that trading the pick for established talent is the way to go as long as you don’t bust the salary cap in the process. Now if a player like Carmelo Anthony is available then all bets are off. I believe its starting to look like the only way to 1) Move contracts like Zach Randolph for cap relief and 2) Get any type of guarenteed peformance out of the six pick would be to package it in a deal. Just a week into writing for Knicksblog and I already have waffled on my thoughts. For the record, I spoke to my friend Anthony Donahue who works for ESPN and is a Knicks season ticket holder and he has a sense that this pick will be traded. “Rice Balls” has a tendency to be correct when assessing the pulse of this team so I will take that into consideration.

  • vino

    I am not sure what Walsh is going to do with this pick. It really all depends on how the draft figures to shape out. We try to figure it out now because it is fun, but a lot will happen in the next few weeks with regard to personal workouts. Guys will move up and guys will fall. If a certain guy drops that another team really wants, that means that a player on their team will become available who might not necessarily be available right now.

    By the way, if the Knicks trade down in the draft, there are definitely a few prospects that may be enticing to look at. First off is Nicolas Batum from France. I do not want to be hypocritical and say the Knicks have to take him becasue I have never seen him play. But watching his clips, he looks to have a sweet jump shot and incredible athletic ability.

    Another couple of guys I would like to look at are Donte Greene and Chase Budinger. I feel like Greene will get pick in the mid-teens. Budinger might fall below that. Watching him play for the last two years, I have been impressed with his athletic and shooting skills. He figures to be a quality 2 guard with great size at the next level.