Knicks Should Trade Emerging Guard

The New York Knicks may need to part ways with one of the team's rising stars.
Mar 3, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; New York Knicks guard Miles McBride (2) celebrates his three-point basket in front of Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland (10) in the fourth quarter at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images
Mar 3, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; New York Knicks guard Miles McBride (2) celebrates his three-point basket in front of Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland (10) in the fourth quarter at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images / David Richard-Imagn Images
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The New York Knicks don't have too many trade assets left after sending so many of their future draft capital to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Mikal Bridges back in June.

One asset that the Knicks were hellbent on keeping was backup guard Miles McBride, who recently signed a three-year, $13 million extension and had his best year to date in the 2023-24 campaign.

McBride, 24, averaged a career-high 8.3 points per game for the Knicks while shooting 41 percent from beyond the 3-point line. While McBride is improving, he is also the likeliest player to be traded in a future deal given his team-friendly contract and upside on the court.

Bleacher Report writer Greg Swartz believes it's only a matter of time until McBride is dealt.

"McBride is part of a loaded Knicks backcourt that features Jalen Brunson, Bridges, Donte DiVincenzo, Cameron Payne, Tyler Kolek, Landry Shamet and others. Minutes may be hard to come by, prompting an eventual trade," Swartz writes.

The backcourt is crowded, but McBride is viewed as the team's backup point guard behind Jalen Brunson, and that should hold some weight over some of his teammates. When Brunson is off the court, inserting McBride would give the Knicks someone who specializes in driving to the rim. Other players on the team aren't in that category, and that explains why the Knicks want to keep him.

The team was patient with McBride in the first two seasons, developing him into the player he is now. To just take all of that work and trade him would not be easy.

A trade isn't happening any time soon, but he does have the best value out of anyone that isn't "untouchable" for the Knicks, apart from maybe Julius Randle.

This means that McBride will always be in trade rumors while he is with the Knicks, whether he is actually on the block or not.

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Jeremy Brener
JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.