There is still plenty of time for the Los Angeles Lakers to make roster moves before training camp begins and one name they have been linked to for some time now is New York Knicks wing Cam Reddish.
The Knicks traded for Reddish last season, but he struggled to crack head coach Tom Thibodeau’s rotation upon his arrival. There have been rumors since last year’s trade deadline linking Reddish to the Lakers and that has continued into this offseason.
The latest rumor comes via Marc Berman of the New York Post, who reported that Reddish has requested a trade from the Knicks and that the Lakers indeed still have interest in the wing:
The Post has learned Reddish wants a change of scenery from New York after he was traded there in January and didn’t initially crack the rotation to build confidence. An NBA source said Reddish is looking for a larger role.
The Lakers have interest in the 6-foot-8 Reddish and could be part of a three-team deal with Mitchell. If they aren’t included, the Knicks could do a separate deal with Los Angeles, perhaps to recoup a first-round pick they lost in a Utah scenario.
This rumor would make sense as Reddish is entering the last year of his contract and a good performance could lead him to a much better deal next offseason. If he feels as if he can’t do that in New York then demanding a trade would be the natural move.
However, that doesn’t seem to be the case as Reddish himself refuted the report on Instagram, putting the ‘cap’ emoji underneath the post report, via Kristian Winfield of the New York Daily News:
— Kristian Winfield (@Krisplashed) September 1, 2022
Talks could very well be taking place between the Knicks and Lakers on Reddish, but the young forward wants it to be known that he has in no way requested his way out of New York. What this means for his future with the Knicks remains unclear as he could still be part of a trade and the Lakers’ interest seems to be real.
In his three NBA seasons with the Hawks and Knicks, the fourth-year wing has averaged 10.5 points and 3.2 rebounds and offers a ton of upside as a 3-and-D wing, something the Lakers sorely need.
Reddish could be Lakers’ target in three-team trade
If the Lakers and Knicks don’t come together on their own potential trade for Reddish, there remains the possibility of a much larger three-team deal involving the Utah Jazz.
The Knicks have a well-known interest in All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell and the Lakers could help facilitate a deal as Utah wants to gather draft picks and the Lakers have two they could add to a deal.
The Lakers could then get back a couple of win-now players in the deal including Reddish and someone like the Jazz’s Bojan Bogdanovic.
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