The New York Knicks are getting closer to the playoffs, where they will put their new group to the test against the top contenders in the Eastern Conference.
In hindsight, the Knicks may have been in better shape had they made a trade for Luka Doncic from the Dallas Mavericks, but that trade proposal was only made available to the Los Angeles Lakers, who sent Anthony Davis, Max Christie, Maxi Kleber and a first-round pick for Doncic.
ESPN insider Bobby Marks looked at what every team could have offered the Mavs to get Doncic, and he believes that the Knicks could have dealt Karl-Anthony Towns and a future first-round pick.
"Doncic and Jalen Brunson, reunited in New York. To get there, Dallas would need to accept a lesser package than what was sent in the actual deal from the Lakers. New York has only one first-round pick they can trade (and that might be conveyed) and are top-heavy in contracts," Marks writes.
"The Knicks could alter the trade, removing Towns and replacing him with a combination of Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart."
The Knicks acquired Towns from the Minnesota Timberwolves over the offseason and the team wouldn't want to move off of that vision so quickly, but the possibility of adding Doncic and pairing him with Brunson again like they were together when they were in Dallas.
The Knicks will roll with their core as they try to get through the big bad wolves in the playoffs in the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers.
If they are unable to find a way to get past them, the team could look to re-visit a blockbuster trade during the offseason.
The Knicks are back in action tonight against the Celtics. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET from inside Madison Square Garden.
