The Knicks didn’t just stumble into another draft-night maneuver when they took Sergio de Larrea and flipped him to Dallas. They used a read on the market, leaned into it, and squeezed value out of a spot in the draft that never even turned into a New York selection.
That kind of move has become familiar under Leon Rose. The Knicks have already built a reputation for making bold choices that don’t always look obvious in the moment, whether it was handing out a contract north of $100 million to the unproven Jalen Brunson, giving up five first-round picks for Mikal Bridges, shipping out the fans’ favorite young players for OG Anunoby, or swapping Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo for Karl-Anthony Towns. They’ve also shown a willingness to work the edges of roster building, even using the G-League Draft to keep and help rehabilitate an injured Landry Shamet.
On the latest episode of Brian Windhorst & The Hoop Collective, the discussion turned to de Larrea after his strong home debut for the Dallas Mavericks. The 20-year-old was drafted by the Knicks on paper, then moved immediately to Dallas.
At first glance, it looked like another routine New York deal for flexibility and future assets. Tim MacMahon, though, said there was more to it than that.
Before the draft, de Larrea was already playing in Spain’s top professional league and had helped Valencia beat FC Barcelona to win the Liga ACB title just days after being picked by the Mavericks. According to MacMahon, word had spread around the league that Dallas had real interest in the guard.
"So, the Knicks picked him- basically, the word got out the Mavs wanted him. And the Knicks picked him, and they worked out a deal," MacMahon revealed on the show.
Windhorst then pointed out that Mike Schmitz, now the General Manager of the Mavericks and a former ESPN colleague, had built part of his relationship with Team President Masai Ujiri through a steady focus on international scouting.
That doesn’t mean every overseas prospect ends up being a target for Schmitz and Ujiri, but it helps explain why New York believed Dallas’ interest in de Larrea was real enough to make the move. The Knicks effectively got the Mavericks to part with two future second-round picks just to land him at No. 30.
And in a summer where the apron rules keep narrowing the margins, every pick, every dollar, and every roster spot matters a little more.
In Other News...
Knicks Just Got Pulled Into A Wild Karl-Anthony Towns Trade Idea
The Knicks have been pulled into an early-season trade idea that already feels bigger than the standings around it. Miami opened with a 0-4 start after reshaping its roster in a blockbuster deal with Milwaukee for Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis, and the rough beginning has only fueled chatter about how the new pieces fit with Bam Adebayo still anchoring the frontcourt.
What makes the speculation more interesting from New Yorks side is the path some are floating to get there: a swap centered on Adebayo and Tim Hardaway Jr. for Karl-Anthony Towns. Nothing has been confirmed by Miami, and the Heat could easily give the group more time to settle in, but the mere fact the Knicks are part of this kind of conversation says a lot about how quickly the league starts chasing the next big idea when a new roster stumbles out of the gate. [Read more 🡒]
Knicks Already Have A Real Andre Drummond Debate On Their Hands
Andre Drummonds first few weeks as the Knicks backup center have already turned into a small but real rotation conversation. He opened the 2026-27 season with a double-double, then saw his minutes dip in the next games as Mike Brown adjusted the lineup, a familiar kind of early-season sorting-out process for a team still figuring out how it wants to use its depth. Even so, Brown has made clear Drummond remains in the backup mix, which matters for a bench frontcourt that needs a dependable presence when the starters sit.
Drummond gave the Knicks a reminder of why that role is worth monitoring in the win over Detroit, when he scored 10 points and grabbed eight rebounds in 14 minutes. It was a cleaner, more productive showing than some of his earlier outings, and it gave New York a useful glimpse of what he can offer when the minutes are there. The larger question now is whether that performance is the start of a steadier climb back into a bigger share of the center rotation. [Read more 🡒]
Knicks Trade Chatter Around KAT Just Got Much Louder
The early-season noise around Karl-Anthony Towns has only grown louder as the Knicks continue to navigate a shaky start and the contract-extension picture remains unresolved. Former NBA player Matt Barnes recently floated a hypothetical blockbuster idea involving Towns and Giannis Antetokounmpo, a scenario that immediately caught attention because it tied New Yorks biggest current question to one of the leagues most prominent names.
For now, though, it is exactly that - a hypothetical. There is no indication the Knicks and the other team have officially discussed such a deal, and both clubs are still dealing with their own uneven starts. Still, the combination of New Yorks uneven play and the lack of a new deal for Towns is enough to keep the speculation machine humming, even if the actual trade path remains far from clear. [Read more 🡒]