Report: Knicks to acquire Cam Reddish from Hawks

The New York Knicks are acquiring G/F Cam Reddish from the Atlanta Hawks, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The Hawks will get a protected 2022 first-round pick via the Charlotte Hornets from the Knicks. ATL is also dumping Solomon Hill’s contract on New York while sending the Knicks a second-round pick in 2025. The Hawks will also acquire former lottery pick Kevin Knox in the deal.

After sifting through these details, wow. The Hawks basically gave away Reddish. This is a huge boost for the Knicks, who add a player with a ton of upside. We’ve seen Reddish flash said upside a few times this season. He was a first-round pick out of Duke back in 2019 and has dealt with injuries and a log-jam situation in the Hawks’ rotation.

In December, Reddish dropped 30+ points twice, so that’s the upside we’re talking about. He’s shooting around 38 percent from 3-point range this season as well, up from 26 percent last year. Reddish gives the Knicks another scoring option behind RJ Barrett and Julius Randle while Derrick Rose is sidelined. Once Rose returns, the Knicks will have plenty of players who can fill it up.

Reddish has another year left on his rookie contract, a team option for 2022-23. The Knicks could pick that up before Reddish becomes a restricted free agent in the Summer of 2023. New York can see how Reddish fits in and didn’t really give up much to acquire him. The 2022 first is protected, so that shouldn’t come back to bite them. Plus, it’s the Hornets’ pick, it may not be that high if Charlotte makes the playoffs.

The Reddish deal could be a precursor for the Hawks to land Ben Simmons from the 76ers. ATL clears cap space by getting with of Reddish and Hill, which is about $7 million in salary. Knox is owed $5.8 million, but ATL could waive his contract or trade him elsewhere. If the Hawks can dump either Danilo Gallinari or Bogdan Bogdanovic on Philly, it should match up the salaries and make things work. Simmons’ contract is for $31 million this season and increases gradually over the next three seasons.

Is this also the Knick lining up to acquire Zion Williamson at some point via trade or free agency? The Knicks now have two of Williamson’s teammates at Duke from the 2018-19 season in Barrett and Reddish. We know Zion isn’t happy in New Orleans and will likely leave — either in a trade or when he can become a RFA.