Donovan Mitchell to the Knicks is “only a matter of time” according to this NBA insider.
Love it or hate it, free agency drama is one of the hallmarks of the NBA. Media and fans alike are always on the hunt to figure out who will be the next star to bolt for a better situation. Ric Bucher is at it again.
The longtime NBA insider penned a column that, in part, focuses on the future of Donovan Mitchell. Bucher is reporting that the prospect of Mitchell to the New York Knicks is gaining steam in league circles. Bucher writes for FOX Sports:
“The incessant buzz around the league is that there are those in Mitchell’s circle who believe he is too big of a star for Salt Lake City. Further, some say it’s only a matter of time before he joins former Creative Artists Agency agent and current New York Knicks president Leon Rose.”
One Eastern Conference executive even went as far as saying, “[The Jazz are] a first-round exit from Donovan being in New York.”
Just like I said with Kendrick Perkins’ “Perk Bomb” about James Harden, this could all be true. Mitchell is from the New York area and he could want to try something new if the Jazz flame out early in the playoffs again.
However, it’s always important to take these reports and rumors with a grain of salt. Remember how Kevin Durant to the Knicks was a “done deal” back in 2019?
As far as that Ric Bucher article about it being "only a matter of time" before Donovan Mitchell comes to New York, this is what RB said about Kevin Durant and the Knicks pic.twitter.com/iWET83rBl4
— Danny Small (@dwsmall8) January 27, 2022
This isn’t meant to be an attack on Bucher. He’s been around the NBA for a long time and is deeply embedded in front offices across the league.
With that said, things change over time and what might seem like a “done deal” now, isn’t always set in stone. So, for every Stephen A. Smith accurately predicting LeBron James to the Miami Heat, there are a dozen Ric Bucher’s predicting Durant to the Knicks.
Forecasting and projecting free agency is an almost impossible task in the NBA.
Until they get that star, the Knicks are always going to be one of the first teams mentioned whenever a story like this comes up. Whether it’s Mitchell, Zion Williamson, Damian Lillard, or anyone in between, the Knicks will be in the conversation.
After all, they are a marquee franchise in the NBA’s biggest market with a franchise that is starving for a championship contender. But for Knicks fans salivating over the possibility of Mitchell wearing orange and blue, nothing is a done deal until it is actually a done deal.
