Knicks trade deadline notes, including what a Bruce Brown package could look like

There’s fairy tale stuff happening at Madison Square Garden these days.

Jalen Brunson getting an All-Star bid, playing in the same building he grew up in. His father, Rick, is on the sidelines as an assistant coach. A man he considers family – Leon Rose – running the team. And the Knicks sit in third place in the Eastern Conference, 15 games over .500.

Moments like these have been few and far between at MSG over the last 20-plus years. Fans, in my opinion, should soak it all in.

But for those who want to look ahead, Rose and the Knicks have some significant decisions to make between now and the Feb. 8 trade deadline.

Do they stand pat at the deadline and play shorthanded until Julius Randle and Mitchell Robinson return?

Do they pursue a bench addition like Bruce Brown, Alec Burks, Jordan Clarkson or Malcolm Brogdon?

Before Randle got hurt, there was a thought among some Knick people that the club should stand pat at the deadline. Prior to that, the Knicks had an interest in Brown, Burks and probably several other players. I don’t know if they are still interested. But I assume they are. They have a gauge of the market and what they’d want to give up for players like Brown, Burks or Clarkson.

Below, we take a look at what some deals for Brown would look like with the help of Capsheet.com’s Yossi Gozlan.

What about Evan Fournier?

Brown has a $22 million salary. So the Knicks only need to send out $14.5 million to match. However, sending out the minimum would put them over the tax. So they’d likely want to send out more money to avoid the tax.

Fournier for Brown works straight up. Toronto would undoubtedly seek draft compensation. The Knicks have eight first-round picks over the next four years.

Fournier and Quentin Grimes also works under NBA trade guidelines. 

Each of these trades would keep the Knicks below the tax. Brown’s contract has a $23 million team option for 2024-25. So the Knicks would be able to use his salary in a trade package for a top player if they desired.

How about the Lakers?

According to ESPN, the Lakers also have had interest in Brown.

But the Lakers are hard-capped, so they can’t exceed the apron. They are $4.9 million below the apron at the moment.

So they would need to include a player with a sizeable salary like D’Angelo Russell, Rui Hachimura, Austin Reaves or Gabe Vincent to make the money work.

Los Angeles can trade its 2029 or 2030 first-round pick. They also have young players like Jalen Hood-Schifino or Max Christie to include in a deal.

For what it’s worth, Russell for Brown straight up works and keeps the Lakers below the hard cap.

Hachimura and one of Jaxson Hayes or Cam Reddish also work while giving the Lakers enough hard cap flexibility after.

Each of these Lakers would eat into Toronto’s future cap space. The Raptors, presumably, would want players on expiring contracts in return for Brown. In this scenario, Los Angeles would need to get a third team involved. Three-team trades are complicated and difficult to execute.

So the Lakers’ pursuit of Brown is challenging.

Grimes Injury

Grimes missed Thursday’s win over the Indiana Pacers after he hyperextended his knee earlier in the week. Given the nature of the injury, it seems unlikely Grimes would play on Saturday against the Lakers. A hyperextension usually requires multiple days to heal.