The Toronto Raptors and New York Knicks were both busy at the NBA trade deadline, albeit with entirely different goals in mind.
Both teams might move closer to their objectives Saturday night, when the free-falling Knicks host the Raptors at Madison Square Garden.
The Knicks closed in on matching an ignoble record Friday night, when they absorbed their 15th consecutive defeat in falling to the host Detroit Pistons, 120-103. The Raptors earned their third straight win Thursday when they beat the Hawks in Atlanta, 119-101.
If the Knicks, who have also lost 23 of their past 24 and 28 of their past 30 to fall to an NBA-worst 10-44, lose to the Raptors on Saturday, they would match the longest losing streak in franchise history. The 2014-15 team dropped 16 straight on its way to finishing 17-65, the worst record in New York's 72 NBA seasons.
New York, which also has lost 15 straight home games, fully committed to the tank on Feb. 1 by trading Kristaps Porzingis to the Dallas Mavericks in a six-player blockbuster. The 7-foot-3 power forward once appeared ready to become the Knicks' franchise player.
The trade positioned the Knicks to continue vying for one of the three worst records in the league -- and a 14 percent chance at winning the draft lottery and the chance to pick Duke freshman Zion Williamson. New York also heads into the summer with enough cap room to pursue two top free agents. >> Read more
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