The Strickland staff reacts to Cam Reddish getting traded to the Knicks
Cam Reddish is a New York Knick. The Strickland staff got together to react to the trade, try to figure out how Reddish will be used in New York, and pay tribute to the departed Kevin Knox.
What was your initial thought of the deal?
Shwinnypooh: That the deal was a good gamble at the right price. Cam’s flawed and hasn’t helped ATL find success on the court during his time there. That’s why you’re getting him at a relatively low cost, especially considering the Knicks are also receiving a 2025 Brooklyn second round pick in the deal too, but the physical tools and raw skillsets teams covet in big wings are all there. Now it’s about molding that clay, baby.
Frank Barrett: How will this affect the Knicks’ rotation in the short term? We’re still a month or so away from Derrick Rose’s return, but even in the short term the Knicks now have Kemba Walker, Evan Fournier, RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley, Quentin Grimes, Alec Burks, and Cam Reddish, and 144 minutes to play them across three positions (unless Reddish can play small-ball 4, which opens up new dilemmas). Who is losing minutes here? They’re not trading for Reddish to *not* play him, even if they intend on using him as a part of a bigger trade down the line.
Jack Huntley: My initial thoughts are that the deal has almost universal approval on NBA Twitter, and that’s just such a nice change. This is growth, organizational growth, right here. I’m intrigued by Reddish the player, but ecstatic at the asset management that turned picks 19, 21, and 32 into Grimes, McBride, Rokas, and Reddish — all of whom look like having good shots of being, at minimum, NBA rotation players.
Derek Reifer: Zion’s coming! In all honesty, it’s a pretty good deal. I don’t think anyone expects this trade to be a massive pendulum swinger for this year’s Knicks. I feel that in the most likely scenario, New York likely won’t get enough on-court production out of Cam over the next 1.5 seasons to justify a mid-first round pick, but the variance on a guy like Cam means that it’s probably a worthy gamble for his upside. If he pans out, they have the added bonus of team control when he enters restricted free agency. It’s nice to get something out of Kevin Knox, and if the future 2nd-rounder turns into something, it’s a cherry on top.
Stingy: Money for nothing. Knicks can’t keep drafting four guys every year. Knox is a lost cause for New York, but maybe he’ll learn from Gallinari and eat off of Trae Young’s creation. Or whatever. Not our problem. Maybe RJ can feel cool.
Komrade: My first thought was fuck the Atlanta Hawks.
Alex Wolfe: I was pretty hype because I literally said on both Locked On Knicks and Knicks Mail.bag over the last couple weeks when asked about Reddish that the Charlotte protected first rounder this year was about all I’d like to give up for Cam. The fact that they got another second rounder back too was just icing on the cake. The Knicks are great at finding talent with those late first round picks, but Reddish probably has more star upside in him (though an admittedly lower, “shoots himself out of the NBA” floor) than any Quentin Grimes- or Immanuel Quickley-level player they could find using the pick.
How did you feel about Cam Reddish two days ago? (So your opinion is unsullied by the fact that he’s now a Knick)
Shwinnypooh: Interesting player who should NEVER have been mentioned in the same sentence as RJ Barrett. Tools are there, but not convinced he ever puts it together.
Frank Barrett: How I felt depended on who I was reacting to. Some thought he sucks (wrong); others, largely Hawk fans, thought he was an All-Star and meaningfully better than Barrett (also wrong). What I saw was a guy shooting 38% from three on almost five 3PA/G, who, surprisingly, has showcased strong and versatile defense. If you remove his heavy desire to settle for midrange jump shots, you have a 22-year-old already capable of contributing positive, winning basketball on both ends of the court.
Jack: On Wednesday I thought he was a toolsy but raw bucket-getting wing. Today — after watching a representative sample of this beautiful young man: the YouTube highlights of his two 30-point games this season — I see shades of Tracy McGrady.
Derek: I should probably start deleting some of my old @RjBarrettStats tweets. In all honesty: young, but an inefficient guy for whom the “eye test” has always shown more than the on-court impact.
Stingy: Not a big fan of his, but not some huge detractor either. Rangey wings that can shoot a little and defend up or down a slot have plenty of value, and he has the ability to get hot now and then. I worry that, much like Fournier, Reddish needs the ball more than he deserves it.
Komrade: What I thought about Cam Reddish the other day was fuck the Atlanta Hawks.
Alex: I think he’s got a lot of potential and needs to learn to be a smarter basketball player. He was considered by some draft evaluators as tops in his very illustrious high school class going into his lone season at Duke. He’s got the ability to create for himself (and maybe others based off his high school reputation), but can he start doing it at an NBA level and reel in some of his worst tendencies on both sides of the ball?
How do you see Cam slotting in with the Knicks?
Shwinnypooh: For the time being, I think he’s situational, but eventually think he slots in as a 3 alongside Grimes on the wing off the bench.
Frank Barrett: Unfortunately, I see him slotting in the Grimes spot next to Quickley and Burks off of the bench. He brings a lot of the same stuff Grimes does, with a little more size and off-the-dribble game.
Jack: This is the tricky bit of a now slightly-crowded wing rotation. I think he’ll get spot minutes for now, but would be surprised if he jumped any of the current rotation immediately. Thibs is loyal to a fault to his vets, and I can’t see IQ or Grimes’ minutes getting slashed, especially since the Knicks have just started playing their best ball of the season.
Derek: I think at the very least, he probably takes Grimes’ minutes, with the potential to steal away from Fournier if the recent hot streak doesn’t continue. In terms of his role, he makes sense as a 3-and-D guy, and would love to see him get minutes alongside his old college buddy in RJ. He’s a really intriguing fit defensively, as the Knicks have a dearth of perimeter players who can generate deflections, whereas he’s one of the best in the league at getting in passing lanes (eighth per 36 minutes).
Stingy: Reddish provides wing depth off the bench that allows Point Burks to remain in the starting unit and pulls the ball out of Quickley’s hands with the bench group a little more. I imagine Grimes’ minutes take a hit.
Komrade: People who get paid more than I have ever made and potentially ever will make are in charge of those decisions. I trust them. He’s a solid 3-point shooter which bodes well, and I do think that Tom Thibodeau is going to get the most milk out of the cow that is his defense.
Alex: He’ll probably get the Obi treatment for a bit. Sparing minutes, quick hook if he does something stupid. Thibs should definitely like his shooting, defense, and cajones to create for himself, though. I’d imagine the idea is for him to potentially be the heir apparent to the role Alec Burks plays at some point (as a wing, not as a “point guard”).
Do you think there are more moves on the horizon for New York?
Shwinnypooh: Absolutely, but not necessarily anything Earth-shattering, at least not now. The move definitely makes it likely the Knicks’ salary cap booms in 2023, which is worth noting. For the time being I think it’s likely Noel and one of Kemba or Burks are moved in a consolidation move for a rotation upgrade at the 5 (see: Turner, Myles).
Frank Barrett: There has to be, right? It sounds crazy to say about a team that is tied for the 10th seed in the East, but the Knicks now have way too many good players. Thibodeau is already inclined to lean to a shorter rotation in the first place, and with his propensity for needing a paint-bound center on the floor at all times, the abundance of guards and wings the Knicks have almost feels like overkill.
Jack: Yes. But in an opportunistic rather than desperate way. Brock Aller is always looking to make a little extra lemonade, and it makes sense to tidy up the rotation some. I also think we’ll have a firm offer on the table for Turner, it just makes too much sense. The question is whether Indiana can get anything better that may tempt Leon into an overpay.
Derek Reifer: Undoubtedly, but not because of this trade. It’s clear this team wants to make the playoffs this year based on their win-now offseason, and currently on the border of the play-in, I’d be surprised if the only win-now move they make is bringing in a 22-year-old with a career 39% FG% and 51% TS%, who’s been at best inconsistent in his NBA minutes. I’m interested to see how they strike the balance with future assets; the Knicks had been stockpiling draft assets, and this is the first future first rounder they’ve dealt since the Bargnani trade!
Stingy: Not really, no. I think this front office is not interested in sweeping wholesale changes. They are much more pragmatic than past regimes and they have a firm grasp on how good this team is (they’re fine). No one is just gonna be dealt because ‘tis the trade season or because some fans have trade fever. They have, in Reddish, a well-regarded sweetener for a star trade to go with whatever mixture of Obi, Mitch, IQ, picks, and salaries.
Komrade: That much seems inevitable. As much as Thibodeau clearly enjoys having 10 guys he feels he can trust on any given night, Obi excluded, this trade for Cam — one where they didn’t trade back anyone with a role or significant playing time — should be a signal to all white-tailed deer at the watering hole; put up or shut up and pack your fucking bags. We tryna win some basketball games over here.
Alex: I think so. My heart wants them to just make a small move or two around the margins — Brandon Clarke or Thaddeus Young stand out to me, with a commitment to going small more often. Fat fucking chance that happens! In reality, I definitely feel like a move for someone like Turner might be in the works. I’d imagine Indiana’s probably just asking way too much for their guys right now, which would explain why the whole team has publicly been on the trading block for a month without any moves yet. I guess we’ll see soon enough.
Kevin Knox’s Knicks career is now over, what was your favorite Knox memory?
Shwinnypooh: Dunking on Ben Simmons’ stupid fucking face.
Frank Barrett: One of my best friends once posited that perhaps Kevin Knox’s struggles were caused by his “massive clown feet” and I haven’t been able to unsee them since. Oh and that same friend saw him play in Summer League a month after being drafted and told me we “have a star on our hands.” Oh, being a Knicks fan.
Jack: We’ll always have Summer League.
Derek Reifer:
Stingy: We’ll always have the Fortnite jacket.
Komrade: I think my favorite Kevin Knox memory isn’t a memory, but a feeling. A feeling of hope, and in so many moments where that feeling couldn’t be found anywhere else on the roster or within the organization. From draft night to Summer League, to his Rookie of the Month stint, from his minutes at shooting guard under David Fizdale to his no minutes under Tom Thibodeau. Sure, it was completely invalid and never actually played out, but it made me feel warm for a bit.
Alex: I had myself talked into him potentially being a Jayson Tatum-level draft surprise after his Summer League performance. Summer League Knox could beat Michael Jordan and LeBron James in a 2-on-1 handicap match.
