The Knicks have made notoriously bad decisions when it comes to trading their draft picks. In 2013, they traded their draft pick for this summer’s draft for Andrea Bargnani who isn’t even on the team anymore, and he just had his contract bought out by the Nets. Phil Jackson doesn’t want to make the same mistakes that his predecessors made, so he would not trade the Knicks’ 2018 draft pick at the deadline.
The Knicks ended up not making any moves at all, but they were looking into trades for Ricky Rubio of the Timberwolves and Jeff Teague of the Hawks. Maybe if they had thrown in that draft pick, the Hawks or Wolves would’ve taken it. According to ESPN.com’s Ian Begley, Phil just wouldn’t throw in that pick though.
Jackson’s firm rule at the trade deadline, per league sources, was that the Knicks hold on to their 2018 first-round pick.
It’s unclear how frequently the Knicks were asked for the pick in the days leading up to the trade deadline, but what is clear is that it was off limits, according to league sources familiar with the club’s thinking.
“Phil said that they weren’t dealing it,” was how one source put it
Jackson was smart not to get rid of this draft pick. The Knicks’ are definitely in the process of rebuilding, and they need their draft picks right now. Their draft pick will end up being a top 10 pick, but they just won’t get it this season because they traded it. They need to hold on to as many picks as they can for now, and they will continue to be careful to not make a bad decision like they did in the Bargnani trade.
