The Dennis Smith experiment in New York has been an absolute disaster, and at this point, the Knicks would be lucky to get anything out of their 3rd-year guard.
As one of the major pieces in the Kristaps Porzingis deal last year, the Knicks acquired Dennis Smith Jr. with the hope that he would become the franchise point guard for years to come. Unfortunately for them, this is not even close to what ended up happening. Smith has been awful in his time in New York and has seemingly played his way out of the rotation.
What is wild is that DSJ was one of the league’s top rookies just a few short seasons ago and was even solid for the Knicks last year. His career is spiraling out of control, and the Knicks are probably about ready to bail on him for whatever they can get in return. Here, that return is Denzel Valentine and a second-round selection.
The Knicks are probably getting robbed in this trade, as with their luck Smith will be back to his normal ways after departing from New York while the team is left with an expiring contract and a worse selection than the one that they had before the deal. However, just getting the former lottery pick off of the roster is close to the top of the Knicks’ priorities list at the deadline.
Grabbing Denzel Valentine for the rest of the season could be a sizable reward for New York if he plays well in his time there. Valentine is a restricted free agent this summer, meaning that the team would save nearly $6 million by dumping Smith’s deal. Valentine could play well for the remainder of the season as a Knick, leading to the team retaining him in restricted free agency.
As for the Bulls, the team would take on Smith’s decent cap hit for the 2020-2021 season, but also acquire a likely top-40 draft pick and a player who was once thought to be an up and coming star. For Jon Paxson and company, this deal seems like a no brainer, despite the current logjam at point guard.