Deadline Saga:Knicks Make A Quick Rush For Raptors Star With An Amazing Offer.
The New York Knicks are said to be offering the Toronto Raptors Evan Fournier and draft picks for Bruce Brown ahead of the trade deadline.
Maybe a “quality play” and a first-round pick for Bruce Brown was a bit of a stretch.
That had reportedly been the asking price for the Toronto Raptors as Marc Stein first reported on his podcast a few weeks ago. That seems to have been a tad high for the 27-year-old Brown who has reportedly come up in trade talks with the New York Knicks for Evan Fournier and “draft compensation,” according to Fred Katz of The Athletic.
It’s unclear even what kind of compensation the Raptors could receive for Brown, but New York has multiple first-round picks this year and a surplus of picks moving forward.
Toronto acquired Brown from the Indiana Pacers as part of the return for Pascal Siakam last month. It’s been widely expected that the organization would eventually deal Brown ahead of Thursday’s trade deadline.
The Knicks have been among the suitors most often mentioned for Brown alongside the Los Angeles Lakers. A trade with New York, however, is a lot easier to envision because of Fournier’s contract which the Knicks can move as an expiring deal to Toronto.
Trade talks with the Lakers would have to center around Rui Hachimura, Gabe Vincent, or D’Angelo Russell, whose name is said to have been mentioned in talks with Toronto, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.
Brown has a team option for next season worth $23 million which could allow Toronto to keep him into the summer and trade his contract at a later date should the offers this week not be enticing.