NBA Trade Rumors: New York Knicks, Atlanta Hawks Discussing Josh Smith Deal
By Josh Sanchez
We continue to hear rumors surrounding Atlanta Hawks forward Josh Smith. Smith has been linked to countless trade rumors and the speculation will only grow as the trade deadline approaches.
The latest trade rumor involving Josh Smith includes the New York Knicks.
According to the rumor, the Knicks would be interested in packaging Amar’e Stoudemire and Iman Shumpert in a deal to land Smith. The Knicks would also receive an additional player in the deal — likely someone like Zaza Pachulia to make the deal work.
But why would the Knicks do such a trade? Per Hoops World:
"The question is why would Atlanta do this? The Hawks would be giving up their cap flexibility by taking on the two years and $45,090,881 remaining on Stoudemire’s contract. The only way Atlanta does this trade is if they’ve given up hope of signing a star free agent this summer and want to bring in a big name that they can sell to their fans. Money aside, Stoudemire has played well this season in New York and he and Al Horford would form a nice frontcourt in Atlanta. Also, the Hawks have made an effort to bring in players from Georgia to engage the fanbase such as Anthony Morrow and Lou Williams. Shumpert starred at Georgia Tech and could be a fan favorite in Atlanta. However, it’s hard to get past the money aspect since the Hawks seem determined to preserve their cap space."
It will be interesting to see how the rumors play out as we approach the deadline, but you can be sure that there will be some action.