John Collins of Atlanta was in the yard and on the trade block Monday night.
Collins, selected in 19th overall in 2017, is a new era, sweet-shooting power forward / center at 6-foot-9.
The Knicks are apparently well stocked with power forward with potential All-Star Julius Randle and their lottery pick Obi Toppin in 2020.
The Knicks have not yet inquired about Collins. They probably see more of what they have in Toppin, and look firsthand at the Atlanta stud in Monday’s game, where Collins scored 19 points with four setbacks in a 123-112 Knicks victory in the garden.
The Hawks are looking to see if there is a strong market for the former Wake Forest star, but NBA executives feel they will not trade Collins unless they get a huge offer. Collins’ value for Atlanta declined when they traded for center Clint Capela last season. The team is reportedly listening to offers for Collins because he turned down a $ 90 million expansion offer and could become a limited free agent this summer.
Although he was a substandard defender, Collins is still an athletic big man who entered Monday with 18.1 points, 7.6 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game while shooting 39.1 percent from 3.. Collins is just 23, and was well-chosen after Frank Ntilikina (No. 8) and former Knicks guard Dennis Smith Jr. (No. 9) in the draft.
The Knicks are in wait-and-see mode as they handle the broken hand of Mitchell Robinson who can keep the big man out of account for at least six weeks.
The Falcons are reportedly looking for a high-stakes lottery for Collins. The Knicks potentially have two lotteries in the 2021 draft – their own and Dallas’ choice. However, the Knicks are currently in the playoff position at No. 7 and Dallas is rising.
Maybe an offer from one of their first two round picks plus Ntilikina might be tempting, but the Knicks will have to be comfortable with Collins and Randle as a small ball front tandem.
Collins and Ntilikina have almost the same salaries, but the French point guard is out of the Knicks’ rotation.
The Falcons were a major threat to the playoffs after a strong off-season in which they signed former Knicks lottery Danilo Gallinari, Bogdan Bogdanovic and point guard Rajon Rondo. But they took the garden court at 11-15, having lost six of their previous seven games.
Cavaliers center Andre Drummond is also on the trade block and will be kept out of the game until he is moved. According to a source, Drummond, a native of Mount Vernon and threatening free agent, would consider the Knicks a good landing spot.
Robinson has another consultation before deciding whether he will have surgery.
Ntilikina has been away from the COVID-19 contact detection team for a week and is still testing negative. He will soon join the Knicks, ‘said coach Tom Thibodeau.
Thibodeau said newcomer Immanuel Quickley’s next step is to “learn the league because they learn from him.”