Would this one maybe make more sense to both teams?
http://espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=kttr5fnI would also include two first rounders in this.
Knicks get:
- Kris Humphreys
- Keith Bogans
- Jordan Crawford
- Jeff Green
- Kelly Olynyk
- Brandon Bass
- Two first round picks
Celtics get:
- Carmello
- Bargnani
- Udrich
- KMart
1) Knicks get $19M in expiring contracts, so next year they fall under the luxury tax line
2) Knicks get to swap Bargnani for Bass, who's contact is half the cost and who probably fits in well in NY. This leaves Amare as the only really bad contract on the team.
3) Knicks get a decent young propect in Olynyk who has some solid upside - plus they could use a 7 footer.
4) Knicks get Crawford and Humphreys - two players who might legitimately improve the team, while also costing them nothing after this year
5) Knicks get Jeff Green - a scoring and athletic SF who can give the fans at least something to cheer for with his occasional explosive finishes. Plus he's has solid trade value if they want to send him out for another pick or expiring contract.
6) Knicks get two strong first round picks for the future
This is hardly optimal for the Knicks, but I think they would only trade Carmello if they are convinced that he won't re-sign with them...and if that's the case they are going to have to cut their losses. If this is the case it also puts the Knicks in full rebuild mode. This trade puts them in a pretty good position to rebuild.
Boston gets Carmello and the risk that he will leave for greener pastures, but since he said he wants to play with Rondo maybe he could put pressure on the Knicks to make it happen. The Knicks do seem to have the dumbest GM's on earth, so Carmello probably wouldn't have too much trouble using his Jedi Mind Trick on them.