New York Knicks: Trading Julius Randle will be easier said than done

Trading Julius Randle could prove to be difficult for the New York Knicks

When the New York Knicks signed Julius Randle to a three-year, $63 million deal over the 2019 offseason, many questioned the move. Roughly a year after the move, the Knicks are reportedly open to moving one of their prized free-agent signings from a year ago.

According to a report from the New York Post, the Knicks are still interested in moving Randle (who has a team option for the 2021-22 season).

"Undoubtedly the Knicks are open to [trading Randle]. His contract for next season ($18.9 million) is manageable but the downside is he will count $4 million on the 2021 cap if they don’t exercise his team option after next season."

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New York Knicks are in a bind

While there could be a market for a 25-year-old forward that averages 20 points and 10 rebounds per game, it’ll be difficult for any team to fork over an asset (that the Knicks would surely ask for) for a player that would essentially be a rental.

Nearly every team is not going to want to absorb nearly $20 million for the 2021-22 season. The 2021 offseason is being built up as one of the best free agency classes in quite some time, potentially the deepest since the legendary summer of 2010.

If teams don’t want to add guaranteed money to their cap sheet for the 2021-22 season, that means teams would essentially be trading an asset for (potentially) one season of Randle. While he has all-star talent and potential, I’m not sure teams would be jumping to trade for a player that they could essentially target (potentially at a cheaper price tag) during the 2021 free agency period.

New York is almost certainly going to decline the 2021-22 team option for Randle if they don’t find a trade partner. I can’t imagine the Knicks not wanting a seat heading into arguably the deepest free agency class in history.

And teams know that, which will make it extremely difficult for the Knicks to find a trade partner.

Perhaps there’s a team out there that says they want a guaranteed two more years of Randle, knowing that they probably won’t hit on a big-name during the 2021 offseason. That could very much be the case.

However, there’s no question that the Knicks will be fighting an uphill battle in their attempts to move Randle. The worst-kept secret in the world is that the Knicks want an as clean of a cap sheet as possible heading into the 2021 offseason. That means either declining the team option on Randle or desperately trying to trade him.