Grade the Trade: Raptors join 3-team Julius Randle deal in perplexing new proposal

Laying out a 3-team trade proposal

The New York Knicks have one main bullet left to fire, and that is Julius Randle. Their team would appear to be at its best with Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby starting at the forward positions, and given Julius Randle's lack of rim protection as a smallball 5 and Tom Thibodeau's reluctance to deploy any lineup without a traditional center, he seems like a star without a home on the current iteration of the Knicks.

That doesn't mean the Knicks want to move him for nothing, but if another team valued Randle highly then the Knicks could get a player back who better fits the roster -- namely, a high-end starting center. If that center was a rim-running, rebounding, shot-blocking classic 5, all the better for Thibs to insert into the starting lineup.

The reason the Knicks and Raptors can't simply swap players 1-for-1, other than the Knicks likely valuing Randle more highly than Poeltl, is that the Raptors don't need Randle either. Their best player is Scottie Barnes, another power forward, and they want to feed Immanuel Quickley touches. Adding Randle doesn't help them in the short-term or long-term enough to make such a deal.

That's why a third team is required, and a recent trade proposal by popular trade site Fanspo suggested the LA Clippers could be interested in Randle's services. They recently published a 3-team trade for later this season to land Poeltl in New York and Randle in Los Angeles.

Here is the deal:

The New York Knicks get a 2-for-1 package here, not only adding a proven rim-protecting center in Poeltl but also Derrick Jones Jr. as another addition to their two-way forward room. He is something of a Mikal Bridges lite, capable of filling a similar role. In the modern NBA having two-way wings and forwards is vital, and you can never have too many.

This may not feel like enough for Randle, a two-time All-NBA player, but it's an excellent fit for the roster they have built. The Knicks have to answer the shot creation question moving off of Randle for two dependent players, but defensively they would likely be the best team in the league.

For the Clippers, they went from three "stars" to two this summer when Paul George walked. Julius Randle would give them back much of the offensive production, if from a player who fits less seamlessly with their other stars. They also land him without sacrificing any other core pieces, sending out a player in Derrick Jones Jr. they signed to the MLE this summer and a single first-round pick.

The logic is there for the Knicks and the Clippers, even if there are still questions to be answered. What about the Raptors? Is this a trade they should consider making?