Trade No. 1 – Toronto Raptors 

New York Knicks Receive: G Kyle Lowry

Toronto Raptors Receive: F Julius Randle, G Dennis Smith Jr.

In the last 6 seasons, Kyle Lowry has been named an NBA All-Star and he has been the leader for the Toronto Raptors on and off the court, but his age is definitely something that needs to be taken into consideration for this franchise moving forward. Lowry will be turning 35 years old this season and with the Raptors struggling to find success early on in the year, they really need to ask themselves how many more years Lowry can still contribute at a high-level. 

Lowry is in the final year of his contract with the Toronto Raptors and is owed $30M this season, which makes things complicated in terms of trading him, but the New York Knicks have the cap space to trade for the veteran guard and could offer up two attractive, young players in return.

Given the problems the Toronto Raptors have in their frontcourt, pairing Julius Randle with NBA All-Star forward Pascal Siakam could make a ton of sense, especially since the Knicks’ big man is only 26-years old and still growing as a player. Dennis Smith Jr. is also a young talent that the Raptors could look to improve with over the next few years.

Since joining the Knicks during the 2018-19 season, Smith Jr. has struggled to carve out a role and has been buried in the depth chart behind other guards. His athleticism and quickness are what makes him an intriguing young player, but he needs to be on the court in order to prove himself. Last year and this year combined, Dennis Smith Jr. is only averaging 17 minutes per game and is never really given an opportunity to prove himself in live-game action.

Without Kyle Lowry, Fred VanVleet and rookie Malachi Flynn make up the Toronto Raptors backcourt, giving DSJ a legit opportunity to prove his worth and grow into a really reliable role player. The Raptors have had success with athletic players like Norman Powell, O.G. Anunoby, and Pascal Siakam, which is why they could find success with a new athletic guard.

The Knicks are in no position to win a championship, even with Lowry leading the charge, but with the few years he has left in his career, he can help lure more big names to New York and be the catalyst to changing the losing ways for the Knicks. He can help to establish a winning culture as he did with the Toronto Raptors.

If the Knicks are to bring in NBA All-Star levels talents via free agency and actually contend in the East once again, then they need to be willing to make a big move this season, and acquiring Kyle Lowry from the Toronto Raptors would be that move. If this opportunity comes their way, they have to do everything they can to make sure Kyle Lowry is suiting up for them and stepping out on the court in Madison Square Garden for the foreseeable future.