The NY Knicks may look at a Jose Calderon trade this year and reports have the team interested in Jamal Crawford and Ricky Rubio as potential targets and this comes as New York has rookies Kristaps Porzingis and Jerian Grant looking to make an impact in year one.
The Knicks roster is basically set heading into training camp, but the team may look at making one more significant move before the summer is over. According to Frank Isola at the NY Daily News, the Knicks have "expressed interest" in a deal for Clippers guard Jamal Crawford. The Knicks have also reportedly come up in trade rumors regarding Ricky Rubio with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Isola writes that if the Knicks pulled off a deal, the most likely player to move is Jose Calderon.
Isola writes that the Miami Heat have also been mentioned as a landing spot for Crawford, but the team is not actively looking for a deal. Crawford is a bench scorer and his role in LA has been diminished with all the moves the Clippers have made this season. The Clippers traded for Lance Stephenson and signed Josh Smith, Pablo Prigioni, Wesley Johnson and Paul Pierce and that leaves Crawford without a clear role for the team.
The Clippers reportedly do not want to just give away Crawford for nothing and that means they at push to get a contributing player back in return. The Clippers are in win-now mode and a deal with Calderon could be a fit from the Knicks. Pro Basketball Talk writes that the Clippers have serviceable depth behind Chris Paul with Austin Rivers and Pablo Prigioni, but those are not great options and even at his age, Calderon could be an upgrade in a reserve role.
Pro Basketball Talk reported last week that Calderon hinted on social media that the Clippers and Wolves could be interested in the point guard. That talk came amid some other trade rumors, with Gigantes reporting that the Knicks are "looking for an upgrade" at point guard and could try and trade for Rubio with the Wolves. The Wolves just signed Andre Miller and they have drafted Zach LaVine and Tyus Jones over the last couple years.
Calderon is older than Rubio, but he is signed only into the season after this one, while Rubio is locked in until 2019. Rubio has always had potential, but he so far has not been able to put together for the Wolves and the team may look at trading some future money to clear space sooner if they feel Rubio will not be part of the long term plan.
Kristaps Porzingis reportedly worked out with Carmelo Anthony this summer, posting a video on Instagram showing the rookie hitting three-pointers. Porzingis is considered more of an offensive player and Phil Jackson has said he expects it to take a couple years for Porzingis to be a true rotation player.
Check here for more on the Knicks trade interest and more on the rookies.
