Raptors: 3 trade rumors that aren’t good for Toronto
By Mike Luciano
No. 2: Victor Oladipo to New York
Marc Berman of the New York Post is reporting that the Knicks, interested in potentially adding a star with a higher ceiling than Derrick Rose, are eying Oladipo in a trade. While the Knicks will compete for a playoff spot thanks to their impenetrable defense, but they need someone with a bit more juice on the offensive end.
Oladipo, who became an All-Star with the Indiana Pacers, ended up with the Houston Rockets after Indiana acquired Caris LeVert in the James Harden deal. Oladipo is a free agent that Masai Ujiri could look to chase in the coming weeks.
Oladipo could give the Knicks a boost on offense and kill the Raptors
Not only could Oladipo give the Knicks a perimeter scorer that can both handle the ball and create his own shot, but he could potentially be enticed to return when he hits the free-agent market. Even though the Raptors might not have the assets needed to entice Houston into trading him, they need to make sure that Oladipo going to the Knicks doesn’t derail their playoff push.
While the Raptors can feel comfortable about their ability to outscore the Knicks, adding one of the game’s best perimeter defenders and outside shooters in Oladipo could completely change things. Toronto might need to overpay for him if it means that it keeps out of orange and blue this season.