The New York Knicks have gauged interest in forward Kevin Knox and guards Frank Ntilikina and Dennis Smith Jr., though they have deemed the packages in return not strong enough, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post.
The team must make some level of changes before the Feb. 6 trade deadline expires, considering they have greatly underachieved despite making several acquisitions in the summer.
“They may be stuck,” a league personnel man said.
The Knicks have not found enough with former lottery pick Kevin Knox, who is averaging seven points, three rebounds, and one assist in only 18.6 minutes per game this season. His numbers and his playing time have precipitously dropped from his rookie season, as the Knicks have put all their chips in No. 3 overall selection RJ Barrett.
Knox has proved too inconsistent and unrefined a player to be worth keeping, as his career 36.9% shooting from the floor and 33.7% from deep suggest. He is also behind a heavy-minutes starter in Marcus Morris, which has stunted his growth as a young player.
The Knicks have tried to develop Ntilikina for the last few years but they have simply not seen enough to warrant that confidence. Same could be said about Smith, whom New York got as the headlining part of a trade package for Kristaps Porzingis.
Smith and Ntilikina are two of the Knicks' nine guards, but they have shown way too little this season to warrant a substantial offer. It's likely the Knicks could keep them through the deadline and figure out how to unload them in the offseason, hoping for a better package in return.
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