The one player Knicks need to move in the NBA offseason of 2024.
The Indiana Pacers recently eliminated the New York Knicks from the NBA Playoffs after a seven-game loss. Fans of the Knicks will undoubtedly place a big question mark next to the series loss because of the team’s numerous injury concerns throughout the roster.
The good news is that in New York City, things seem to be going well.
The Knicks must, of course, keep making the proper decisions, which may involve some cunning trades.
New York has done precisely that in the past few years. In order to lift the team out of the dumps after more than two decades of suffering, executive Leon Rose has done an outstanding job of using free agency and trades to provide Tom Thibodeau with talented stars (like Jalen Brunson) and ideal complementary role players (like OG Anunoby, Josh Hart, and Donte DiVincenzo).
For the Knicks, this offseason will be crucial, so they’ll need to think outside the box. They will have to worry about keeping their own free agents in addition to not having a lot of cap room. Consequently, New York might have to rely primarily on trades to move forward.
Will any Knicks players be traded during this offseason?
There’s one player New York might want to think about dealing.
Bojan Bogdanovic
Bojan Bogdanovic was acquired by the Knicks from the Detroit Pistons during the trade deadline. In the transaction, Alec Burks also crossed across.
This is the situation: In New York, Bogdanovic was not a very good player. In Detroit, he was averaging 20.2 points per game on 46.8/41.5/77.9 shooting splits, but his Knicks numbers significantly dropped. Bogdanovic scored 10.4 points per game while shooting 43 percent from the field, 37 percent from three-point range, and 80 percent from the free-throw line in 29 games played with New York during the previous season. Additionally, he sustained an injury early in the playoffs that kept him out of the Pacers series.
Bogdanovic did have a few memorable moments during his time with the Knicks, but overall, his output was quite low. In what will likely be his last season under the contract, he is expected to make little over $19 million next season. He might be a somewhat appealing asset to rival clubs due to his expiring contract.
Why, though, would New York relocate Bogdanovic?
First of all, Thibodeau is drawn to defensive players. Although Bogdanovic is a clever defender, he lacks the physical strength to stop some of the league’s best flanks. Is it possible to conceal him? Yes, but if he plays a lot of minutes, you will notice his faults.
Second, depending on what they do in free agency, the Knicks could find themselves in a bind the next season.
Although Anunoby and Burks are both scheduled to become free agents this summer, you have to believe that New York will exert every effort to keep Anunoby. Burks had a terrible regular season, but he turned in strong play in the postseason and might have earned a position on the roster for the following year, especially if he is traded for less money.
The Knicks have Miles McBride, who has definitely earned himself some more playing time going into next season, in addition to the core players Hart and DiVincenzo.
As you can see, especially with McBride’s rise, Bogdanovic might find it challenging to earn a steady burn over the 2024–25 season. Bogdanovic doesn’t really accomplish anything besides score goals, either. He isn’t a particularly good rebounder or playmaker, and we’ve already talked about his shortcomings on defense.
To help make the rotation on the wings a little more obvious, New York might want to consider moving the 35-year-old. Once more, he is approaching the final year of his contract, thus other teams looking for a wing scorer might be willing to make a trade for him. After all, he was producing impressive numbers with the Pistons.
