New York Knicks president Leon Rose has plenty of decisions to make in the upcoming offseason, as his team is full of veterans on expiring and/or team-friendly deals, young players with plenty to prove, and is currently without a head coach.
Among the many uncertainties surrounding the roster, Rose will have to figure out who will be their starting point guard in 2020-21, as incumbents Elfrid Payton, Frank Ntilikina, and Dennis Smith Jr. have not shown enough promise to earn the job.
According to SNY's Ian Begley, some members of the Knicks organization are interested in Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Chris Paul.
There are still people within the Knicks organization that feel trading for Chris Paul could help jump-start their effort to build a winning culture.
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At 34, Paul was having another All-Star campaign before the league went on hiatus—contributing 8.1 Win Shares (20.0 points, 7.7 assists per 36) and leading the surprising Thunder (40-24) towards the Western Conference playoffs.
“There are still people with the Knicks that believe that bringing Chris Paul onto this roster at this time would jumpstart the franchise's effort to build a winning culture, to give these young players winning habits.”
Begley added that some Knicks officials believe the future Hall of Famer “would do wonders” around the young Knicks core, primarily R.J. Barrett and Mitchell Robinson.
Rose is Paul's former agent at CAA, and the two have a strong relationship.
Paul is owed about $41.5 million next season, and will likely pick up his $44 million player option for 2022. The Knicks are projected to be one of the few teams with significant cap space for the next few summers.
Begley speculates that the Knicks would have to give up at least one young player to satisfy Oklahoma City.
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