Minnesota eventually threw in the towel on chasing the Warriors’ D'Angelo Russell — at least for now — and jumped into a massive four-team, 12-player trade that netted them Malik Beasley and Juan Hernangomez.
The Knicks, however, are not throwing in the towel. They are just nowhere near a deal.
The Knicks and Timberwolves are talking, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic.
The New York Knicks continue to pursue Warriors' star D'Angelo Russell, league sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium. So far, Knicks haven't offered packages that would close gap on Golden State's price point.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 5, 2020
What do the Warriors want? The Knicks 2020 first-round pick, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post.
As I reported two nights ago, Scott Perry won’t give up their 2020 first-round pick in D’Angelo Russell deal.
— Marc Berman (@NYPost_Berman) February 5, 2020
This falls in line with what the Warriors were asking of the Minnesota Timberwolves when those sides talked Russell trade. Minnesota ultimately walked away.
Golden State has asked for a lot in Russell trade talks because they don’t necessarily want to move him at the deadline, it would take a “Godfather” offer, sources have told NBC Sports. There are two reasons for that. First, and the point the team pushes publicly, the Warriors want to see what a Russell and Stephen Curry backcourt looks like, and that is not happening until March. Second, the Warriors are currently hard-capped — the result of the Russell sign-and-trade — and that limits their flexibility. After July 1 that restriction is gone, the Warriors think there will be better offers, and they can be more creative in making it all fit.
The sides are far enough apart on a trade that Russell is suiting up to play Wednesday night in Brooklyn (where he was an All-Star last season). If you want to know who the Warriors are close to trading, look who is sitting out:
The Warriors are expected to hold Glenn Robinson III and Alec Burks out of tonight's game in Brooklyn in anticipation of trading one or both before Thursday's 3 PM ET deadline
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) February 6, 2020