SPANISH HARLEM, NY – It seems all I read about lately centers around trades that may or may not go down between my two favorite teams… the Yankees and Knicks. If you’re a Knicks fan, then you heard about trading Carmelo Anthony to (Insert Team Here) or making a play for Kyrie Irving. If you’re a Yankees fan, you think about trading top prospects for Sonny Gray or Yu Darvish. No one really knows if any of these trades will go down but it’s always fun to debate them.
Let’s start with Carmelo Anthony… you can’t talk about the Knicks without mentioning him getting traded. I’ve come to the conclusion that you should trade him at some point but not because you want him off the team. It has to be a trade that benefits the Knicks and taking on another bad contract is not one of them. At this point your best get would be an expiring contract and a draft pick but everyone knows Melo wants out NOW so interested parties (i.e. Houston Rockets) will be looking to fleece the Knicks anyway they can. Some of you may want Anthony out by any means necessary but it’s important for the Knicks to make the best trade possible because their future may depend on it.
As many of you may know by now, Kyrie Irving has asked to be traded and ACTUALLY named the Knicks as one of his preferred teams. Though it’s not likely that a trade can be consummated, I would be excited to see Irving and Kristaps Porzingis on the floor together. Some scenarios being thrown around have centered on Melo, Frank Ntilikina and possible draft picks. That may seem like a lot to give up in the short term but if you think both players are the future of the organization, you make that trade. I’m all for making the Knicks better but I don’t trust this franchise to make the right decisions… whatever they may be.
The Yankees are another team ready to make a trade but unlike the Knicks, I actually trust Brian Cashman. The Baby Bombers have one of the best farm systems in baseball and that’s still the case, even with them losing prospects in a trade with the Chicago White Sox. Starting pitching is the one area that needs to be upgraded but what is available may not be worth what other teams are asking for. Sonny Gray of the Oakland Athletics is a name that is mentioned as a possible addition but I wouldn’t trade high value prospects for someone who has been hurt a lot throughout his career. He is young and cost effective, qualities the Yankees are looking for… but at what price? I’d rather Yu Darvish from the Texas Rangers. Darvish will be a free agent and won’t cost as much. There are rumors he loves the Rangers and vice versa, it’s possible he could re-sign with Texas after the season, so it wouldn’t take important prospects to pry him away for half a season.
Sure, I want the Yanks to trade for a starting pitcher but not if it means giving up too much in the process. This team is progressing nicely and you don’t want to make any trades that can impede that. The timetable to win has moved up since the start of the season and though there is a sense of urgency to make the playoffs this year, you have to be smart about who you bring into the fold. I want to win as much as the next person but I also want to win consistently every year going forward and the only way to do that is to make smart trades… not desperate ones.
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