Does this trade make sense for the New York Knicks?

For the right price, we could absolutely see the New York Knicks trade Obi Toppin this season, but this is certainly not the trade in which they will move him.

New York drafted Toppin 8th overall last year for a reason and while he may not be in their immediate plans to be a great team this year, he still holds a lot of value because of his length, athleticism, and age. 

Trading Toppin away from Danuel House Jr. gives the Knicks a rotational player they can utilize off-the-bench this year, but that is about it.

House’s potential is nowhere close to that of Obi Toppin’s and he is in the final year of his contract, meaning that all New York would get from this trade is Brooklyn’s 2023 first-round pick, which would be near the end of the first-round anyways. 

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There is no real value for the Knicks to get in this trade, which is why it will not happen. However, there is still the possibility that the Knicks will look to be “buyers” near the NBA trade deadline this year and as a result, they could look to add another high-level talent to their roster in order to make a deep postseason run. 

Leveraging Obi Toppin while he still has draft value would definitely get the Knicks a player they are targeting, hence why trading him or Danuel House Jr. makes no sense at all.

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If something were to happen to Julius Randle and the Knicks got rid of Toppin, they would be scrambling for answers, which is why they need to keep the young forward, at least through the first half of the season.