The New York Knicks surprisingly have the potential to put together the best package for Giannis Antetokounmpo, but it'll hurt.
Big changes could be on the menu for the Knicks this summer if they lose handily to the Boston Celtics in the second round, or worse, blow a 3-1 series lead to the Detroit Pistons in round one (the series was 3-2 entering Wednesday).
New York might consider moving on from Tom Thibodeau and shaking up the roster this offseason unless they miraculously go on a deep playoff run.
Antetokounmpo has already been linked to the Knicks in the media due to the collapsing situation with the Milwaukee Bucks and Giannis's well-documented desire to play in a big market.
The barrier for the Knicks is that Giannis would have multiple suitors with excellent offers on the table if the Bucks activated a bidding war. Teams with a boatload of young talent and first-round draft capital like the Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets would get involved.
But here's the thing -- if the Knicks were bold enough to shock the basketball world, they could leapfrog the above barrier and present the strongest offer for Giannis: a package of Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson.
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Trading Brunson might cause a city-wide riot in the streets of Manhattan, but this deal isn't as crazy as it first appears (by the way, Kyle Kuzma would also be sent to the Knicks to make the money work).
First of all, the Knicks would still be a playoff team in 2025-26 with a core of Giannis, OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart, and Mitchell Robinson.
It would be a soft rebuild around Giannis and a rip-off-the-band-aid departure from the Brunson-KAT era that doesn't look likely to yield any NBA Finals appearances with the Boston Celtics standing in the way.
The Knicks have to be brutally honest with themselves about Brunson. Is he good enough to be a first or second option on a title team? And if so, are Brunson and Towns good enough to topple the Celtics (or Cleveland Cavaliers) with the current roster or something similar around them?
Brunson is one of the toughest players in the NBA, but he's undersized and always playing hurt.
If the Knicks were willing to imagine a brand new future built around Giannis, entertaining an out-of-the-box idea like this could be on the table.
Within 12 to 24 months, New York could use part of the Anunoby-Bridges-Hart asset group to acquire another big piece to pair with Giannis.
The Knicks as currently constructed aren't getting over the hump. Maybe it's high time to re-think the direction of the team in a huge way.
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