During the 2022 offseason, many analysts thought that the New York Knicks, in their pursuit of a star, would go all-in on their push for Donovan Mitchell, whose availability on the trade market was no secret after the Utah Jazz's playoff disappointment. In the end, the Knicks haggled way too hard and the Cleveland Cavaliers swooped in, pairing Spida with Darius Garland en route to the Cavs' first playoff berth in their second post-LeBron James era.

Mitchell has been outstanding for the Cavs, serving as the team's primary offensive catalyst, which may have caused the Knicks brass some regret. After all, despite the high price to be paid that was necessary to acquire his services, Mitchell has been well worth it. However, the Knicks don't exactly regret passing up the opportunity to put Spida alongside Jalen Brunson in a high-octane backcourt.

According to former Knicks executive Scott Perry, the team didn't view Donovan Mitchell as the “singular driving force” that makes going all out in their pursuit of him on the trade market worthwhile, noting the exorbitant price the Jazz put on Spida's services.

“He was a good player but he needed more around him to win. Because if he was that singular force, Utah probably would’ve been in the conference finals if he were that singular force. But he wasn’t that singular force. That’s not a criticism against him. That’s just an evaluation that you must make,” Perry on a recent episode of The Hoop Genius podcast, via RealGM.

Scott Perry is right in a way; the Cavs didn't have much playoff success despite their trade for Donovan Mitchell, and the team that beat them to a pulp in the first round was the Knicks as well, justifying their decision. Had the Knicks acquired Mitchell, it would have meant fielding an undersized backcourt instead of putting the more defensively-inclined Josh Hart or Quentin Grimes.

Would the offensive boost have been worth it? Perhaps. Mitchell is a more efficient scorer than Julius Randle, and he's a more lethal threat from deep than Jalen Brunson. But the Knicks aren't a bad team as presently constructed and they still have all the assets to trade for a more impactful player, like Joel Embiid.