The Trade
On Saturday, the New York Knicks traded RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley, and a 2024 2nd Round pick to the Toronto Raptors for OG Anunoby, Precious Achiuwa, and Malachi Flynn. Most fans and analysts are praising the Knicks for the move, and rightly so. In Anunoby, they get a high quality starting 3 who fits seamlessly into their plans without taking anything off the table from their featured players. I am assuming in my analysis that he and the Knicks will be able to agree to a contract extension.
OG Was a Hot Commodity
Anunoby has been a popular trade target across the league because he fits seamlessly onto virtually every team and he plays a pivotal role that is scarce in today's NBA - the "3 & D guy." At 6-7, 230 pounds with a 7-2 wingspan, Anunoby is an ideal starting small forward capable of defensinf multiple positions. He has playoff experiende and he is still just 26 years old. He plays an efficient role on offense as well and will not take anything off the table from New York's higher usage players such as Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle. He takes 10 to 12 shots per game, half of them being three pointers, and averages about 16 points per game. He is a good shooter too, a career 38% on threes and 47% from the field.
Knicks
Achiuwa was more of a throw-in to this deal, but he will help New York manage their backup center minutes better. Since Mitchell Robinson's season-ending injury, they've been forced to play 38-year old Taj Gibson much more than they'd prefer. Toronto, on the other hand, was able to get value for OG, who is on the final year of his contract and was not likely to return. Barrett, the 3rd overall pick in 2019 from Duke, never quite lived up to his draft status. He is a tweezer, stuck between the 2 and the 3 positions, without the necessary skills to reliably slot in at either spot long term. Trading him releases the Knicks from the challenge of building around his foibles. Quickley, 24, is a skilled combo guard, but he just doesn't fit into the Knicks' future plans because he is an impeding restricted free agent and his role is superfluous among their other (mostly Villanova alumni) rotation guards. Picking up a good starting 3 was worth parting with Barrett and Quickley.
Raptors
The Raps owe a Top 6 protected first round pick to San Antonio thanks to their Jakob Poeltl trade last year. They wanted to get something for Anunoby without completely falling to the bottom of the NBA Standings this season. I believe this trade accomplishes that. More than anything, this move is about their commitment to build around Scottie Barnes. I'm sure Scottie is sad to see his friends Anunoby and Achiuwa go, but the Raptors are taking the first steps toward building a roster that accentuates his skill set. Quickley will be a nice guard to pair with Scottie. They'll get the opportunity to work with Barrett, but I ultimately don't think he will be part of Toronto's future.
Positional Scarcity at SF
To illustrate this, let's look at the small forwards in the NBA. There are six top tier guys that you would 100% take over OG Anunoby: LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Jayson Tatum, Jimmy Butler, Kawhi Leonard, and Paul George. Next, you would probably say Mikal Bridges, Brandon Ingram, and Franz Wagner are better than OG too. That's nine forwards. After that, you could make a case based on team fit, age, and well-roundedness for OG over anyone else. Taking OG over Khris Middleton and DeMar DeRozan is probably a stretch, but I wouldn't fault you for it. Then you're looking at Scottie Barnes, Jaden McDaniels, Michael Porter Jr, Andrew Wiggins, Bruce Brown, Keldon Johnson, Dillon Brooks, and...there is a drop-off from there. The point is, OG Anunoby is m somewhere between 10th and 14th best at a highly valuable position. The large majority of the players agead of him in that ranking will never be available on the trade market or free agency, and not for the relatively low price the Knicks paid.
Who Missed Out?
Several teams vying for the playoffs would have been interested in trading for OG or signing him in free agency this summer. To me, Philadelphia is the biggest loser from this. With all the expiring contracts on their books, they had to be looking at Anunoby as an ideal target. Oklahoma City, New Orleans, and Indiana are some other teams on the rise that could have used Anunoby's help. I'd throw in Dallas, Cleveland, and the Lakers as other teams that could use help at the 3 but probably didn't have the assets to acquire Anunoby anyway.
Which forward is best in your mind?
0%OG Anunoby
0%Jaden McDaniels
0%Scottie Barnes
0%Michael Porter Jr.
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