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The New York Knicks and Kristaps Porzingis have had a shaky relationship to say the least.
When Phil Jackson was at the helm of basketball operations and seemingly running the organization into the ground, Porzingis showed how unhappy he was with the current state of affairs by skipping the exit meeting with Jackson after the season ended last year.
In response, Jackson floated the idea of trading Porzingis, who was the team's best young prospect, much to the chagrin of Knicks fans. But Jackson wasn't the only executive who thought trading Porzingis was the right move, per Ian Begley of the ESPN.
Jackson and the Knicks then discussed potential trades of Porzingis with several teams in the days and weeks leading up to the NBA draft. Those conversations were painted in some corners as Jackson teaching Porzingis a lesson after the skipped exit meeting, but multiple sources familiar with the matter say that there were members of the organization in favor of trading Porzingis at the time.
We all know what transpired afterwards. Jackson was fired, Anthony was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder and Porzingis stayed.
But had the team traded The Unicorn, the franchise would be in worse shape than it was when Jackson tried to get Anthony to waive his no-trade clause. They would be rudderless without a star, and headed to the lottery.
