The Knicks needed to get rid of J.R. Smith for cap room. The Cavs needed to get rid of Dion Waiters for LeBron’s sanity. The Thunder just needed more scoring. The three teams came together Monday night to complete a blockbuster six-player trade that finally put an end to the J.R. Smith experiment in the Big Apple.
Here’s a breakdown:
Oklahoma City Thunder get:
Dion Waiters (from the Cavs)
Cleveland Cavaliers get:
J.R. Smith (from the Knicks)
Iman Shumpert (from the Knicks)
Protected 2015 first round pick (from the Thunder)
New York Knicks get:
Alex Kirk (from the Cavs)
Lou Amundson (from the Cavs)
Lance Thomas (from the Thunder)
2019 second round pick (from the Cavs)
When it’s all said and done the Knicks will save $20 million in salary. Sadly or happily, depending on your perspective, that’s the best news of the Knicks season.
By the way, all three teams lost Monday night.
[ESPN]
