The New York Knicks are still looking for another center.
The Knicks were already short on centers, with starting center Mitchell Robinson reportedly missing the start of the season recovering from foot surgery in May. Robinson is targeting a return in December or January.
Robinson’s absence will be a major test of the Knicks’ big man depth, thrusting Precious Achiuwa and Jericho Sims into important roles from the start.
According to James Edwards III of The AthleticThe Knicks have been “scouring” the market for centers and have shown interest in Detroit Pistons big man Isaiah Stewart.
The Pistons have a loaded center rotation with Stewart, promising third-year big man Jalen Duren, as well as free agent Paul Reed, who was once considered a Knicks target.
Stewart, 23, has averaged 9.3 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.2 assists and a block per game in four years in the league. He just signed a four-year, $60 million contract with the Pistons.
Stewart is slightly shorter than Achiuwa, standing at 6’4″, which is similar to Stewart’s height. However, Stewart weighs 250 pounds, which gives him the weight to handle bigger, more physical pivots.
Interestingly, Stewart is also a good three-point shooter, shooting 35 percent on four three-point attempts per game over the past two seasons. Stewart would give the Knicks a five-point option they never had under Tom Thibodeau.
Of course, since we’re in the NBA’s second-tier era, it’s hard to construct a trade for the Knicks. They’d have to send more money than the Pistons in the deal to avoid being stuck in the second tier.
For this reason, lower-paid centers might make more sense as trade targets for the Knicks.
Assuming the Knicks don’t want to move one of their top six players (Jalen Brunson, Julius Randle, OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart and Donte DiVincenzo), that leaves Robinson ($14.3 million), Achiuwa ($6 million) and Miles McBride ($4.7 million) as non-minimum-salary trade pieces. It’s unclear whether a deal could be made.
Trading Robinson for a small center like Stewart would leave the Knicks very small and could be something of a lateral move.
Achiuwa won’t be eligible for a trade until January. Even if he is eligible, the Knicks would have to add salary to the deal to match Stewart’s contract.
Unless Knicks management can find other ways to add a higher-salary player to a contract, it would be difficult to land Stewart without hurting the Knicks’ depth.
More Knicks news:
Ranking the Knicks’ eight most important players this season
NBA insider says ‘little-discussed’ upside to Knicks’ Mikal Bridges trade
Why Few Knicks Players Actually Live in New York
