The New York Knicks have acquired Dalen Terry via trade
The New York Knicks have acquired Dalen Terry via trade
The New York Knicks have traded Guerschon Yabusele to the Chicago Bulls in return for Dalen Terry, per ESPN’s Shams Charania.
Terry, 23, will provide competition in New York’s backcourt, where he will compete for a role as a backup guard. Terry was the 18th pick in the 2022 NBA Draft and is in his fourth NBA season.
Since entering the NBA, Terry has been a career backup in Chicago. He averaged 3.5 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists per night on 11 minutes per game. Primarily a two-guard, Terry will likely fit the Knicks ‘ offensive system. Furthermore, the opportunity to learn from players such as Jalen Brunson could help take Terry’s game to a new level.
Yabusele, who joined the Knicks in the summer, had struggled to find a consistent role within Mike Brown’s offense. He had emerged as New York’s most likely trade candidate in recent weeks. He was averaging 8.9 minutes per game.
Now, the veteran forward will have the opportunity to reproduce the performances we saw from him on the Philadelphia 76ers last season.
All-in-all, the Knicks have acquired a young guard/wing with potential, who projects to fit in well with Brown’s movement-heavy system. In return, the Bulls land a ready-made contributor in the front court.
Knicks Not Looking For Giannis Bidding War
Moving on from Yabusele felt inevitable for the Knicks. However, by ensuring the deal was a straight one-for-one move, the front office has ensured the team still has all the necessary trade pieces for a potential Giannis Antetokounmpo trade, either ahead of the trade deadline or in the summer.
However, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst has reported that New York isn’t looking to enter a bidding war for Giannis.
“The Knicks believe in this team, and that could end up being an excellent assessment or that could end up being a mistake,” Windhorst said. “But they believed in this team last summer when Giannis was sort of loosely available. They didn’t make an aggressive offer at that time to move those talks forward.”
Windhorst continued.
“If they want to win a bidding war for Giannis now, I think it would take a three- or four-team trade. That is just not happening. They are not showing that aggression to get Giannis right now.”
Adding Terry was a smart tweak for New York. A tweak that allows them to remain in the hunt for Giannis, but also improves the current roster, should the franchise opt to stand pat and trust the roster that’s already in place.
Yabusele Had Been Pleased To Join The Knicks
When Yabusele signed with the Knicks in the summer, he spoke of his happiness to join a competitive team.
“When you look at New York, you can already see that the franchise has risen a lot in recent years,” Yabusele told Arthur Puybertier of EuroBasket. “…They are conference finalists; the collective project is visible and very interesting for me. They are a very good team that plays very well together and is playing for the title! Having this goal was something important for me, I want to play for something.”
Yabusele continued.
“Apart from that, New York is a historic team. Playing at Madison Square Garden is the dream of every NBA player, including mine! It’s a special place, I’m very happy to be there!”
Unfortunately, Yabusele’s tenure with the franchise never got off the ground. Now, he will have a chance to carve out a sizeable role in Chicago. It’s not what Yabusele would have expected when joining the franchise in free agency, but it could be the perfect move for his career.