Greg Monroe is not backing down and the result is a stalemate between he and the Detroit Pistons. The center wants a long-term contract, but not with the Pistons. Detroit is asking for too much in trade or else they will counter every offer placed on the young big man. The two sides cannot reach any sort of agreement which is causing several teams to continue exploring the idea of getting Detroit to agree to a trade. The New York Knicks are one of them.
The Knicks have kicked the tires on a deal for Monroe like most teams have, but backed out after getting the impression that Detroit had no plans of letting him go. As Monroe continues to sit on the market this late in the offseason, Chuck Myron of HoopsRumors.com claims the Knicks are emerging interested once again in hopes that Detroit eventually caves.
The issue for the Knicks is their lack of salary cap space to place an offer on Monroe and their lack of assets to assemble a trade package. New York could try and offer up the expiring contracts of Amar'e Stoudemire and Andrea Bargnani if Monroe agrees to sign the one-year qualifying offer. That is likely the only way the Knicks could acquire Monroe before the season or even during the mid-year trade deadline.
New York has been linked to several trade offers over the recent week. ESPN's Kevin Pelton noted that a deal regarding Iman Shumpert and Cleveland Cavaliers' veteran forward Tristan Thompson could work out. The Knicks have too many shooting guards on the roster as is and this would give the team size off the bench. They have also been linked to a deal with the Philadelphia 76ers and Stoudemire. Philadelphia is looking to take on unwanted expiring contracts to get them over the salary cap minimum and Stoudemire fits the description.
The Knicks may or may not follow through with their pursuit of Monroe, something the Atlanta Hawks are also going. The Hawks are another team circling the Monroe wagon, watching the situation closely. Myron believes that if Atlanta is serious about a deal, they will likely have to give up Paul Millsap in return. Monroe's qualifying offer will be worth $1.7 million. The Pistons could seek a sign-and-trade with Millsap who's contract expiring at the end of the season. The Hawks have shown zero interest in trading Millsap, so file this under never going to happen.
