Knicks Rumors: Raymond Felton Trade Deal Could Include Iman Shumpert


According to recent New York Knicks rumors, Raymond Felton will not be on Phil Jackson’s roster in the 2014-2015 season. It is no secret that Phil Jackson plans to blow up the New York Knicks this offseason. The most recent Knicks rumors come from SNY.tv‘s Adam Zagoria, who reported that Jackson told Raymond Felton that the team plans on trading him this offseason.

At this point the Knicks rumors concerning a trade of Raymond Felton are based on one league “source,” which can often be unreliable. The reality is that the Knicks definitely need to dump some players between now and the 2015 NBA free agency season. With absolutely zero first round picks in the 2014 NBA draft, they have no opportunities to get fresh talent and no trade pieces. To make matters worse, the Knicks still have no coach and the coaching options are fading fast. With Steve Kerr surprisingly going to the Golden State Warriors, Jackson will likely have to hire a young, unproven coach to fill the vacancy.

Knowing his team needs to unload bloated contracts and talent-deficient players like Raymond Felton, Jackson has to consider every player “tradeable” this offseason. If these Knicks rumors prove to be true, Jackson will almost certainly have to part with one of his two young players. Both Tim Hardaway Jr. and Iman Shumpert have high upside potential and represent the only young bright spots on the Knicks roster. All season long, the Knicks have wrestled with the question, “Who is more valuable to the organization?”

Tim Hardaway Jr. showed himself to be the kind of player that the team can rebuild with. Shumpert, a fan favorite, is offensively unreliable and carries a lot of baggage being a part of the “old” Knicks. If Phil Jackson wants to recreate the Knicks in his image, Iman Shumpert will probably be a trade casualty. Any Knicks rumors regarding a trade for Raymond Felton will almost certainly include a team looking to improve their guard depth with Iman Shumpert.

Raymond Felton’s ridiculous contract is the biggest hurdle the Knicks will have to overcome if they want to trade him. He is set to receive just over $9 million through the 2015-2016 season. What team will want a borderline back-up point guard with weight problems and off-court issues? It will have to be a team interested in either Iman Shumpert or Tyson Chandler. Of course, if the Knicks pull off a sign and trade with Carmelo Anthony and the Houston Rockets, it would not be surprising to see Daryl Morey take on someone like Felton.

Unfortunately, Phil Jackson probably needs to face reality. There are probably no teams in the NBA that are even remotely interested in Raymond Felton. Most likely, all of these Raymond Felton Knicks trade rumors will go away when the team eats his contract and releases him before the season starts.

[Image via thatsenuff.com]

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