Houston Rockets: 3 trades that send Victor Oladipo to the New York Knicks

Houston Rockets and New York Knicks Trade #1

Of all the deals that the Knicks and Rockets could hammer out this one seems to fit both parties’ agendas. Immanuel Quickley has quickly become one of the Knicks’ most interesting young players but his lack of draft pedigree means his upside is questionable.

Quickley has been lights-out from the free-throw line this season (94.2-percent), which portends well for his future 3-point shooting but he struggles to get to and finish at the rim. His future looks to be as the league’s best backup point guard or as a 3-point marksman.

Either way, his immediate role in Houston would be defined and most crucially he is incredibly cost-effective. Drafted with the 25th pick in the 2020 draft, Quickley is under contract through the 2023-24 season and won’t cost more than $5 million in any season.

If the Rockets want to get cheaper and younger then Quickley fits the bill. However, due to the fact that his upside appears more limited, the Knicks will have to chip in two first-round picks to get Houston to bite.

The Rockets would likely want one of the Knicks’ picks and one of the Mavericks’ picks to make the deal work. If the Knicks give up the Mavericks’ unprotected 2021 first then they’d probably send the Rockets a future first that is highly protected.

Verdict

All of these deals would make the Rockets less competitive in the short term but would dramatically help their ability to build a contender in the future. In some ways, the Rockets have to go overboard in their asset collection to offset the abomination that was the Russell Westbrook for Chris Paul trade.

The Rockets’ surprising season shouldn’t cause the franchise to change course. The future is more important than the present and outside of residing in a top-six spot in the Western Conference at the trade deadline they should take any offer for Oladipo seriously.