“A championship with the Knicks is worth almost 3 anywhere else” - Jerry Ferrara believes the New York Knicks don’t need a big pitch to convince 3x All-Star to join them
Jerry Ferrara said the New York Knicks would be a prime destination for Donovan Mitchell. He said the weight of winning a championship for the franchise is substantial.
Ferrara said:
“A championship with the Knicks is worth almost three anywhere else.”
Will Donovan Mitchell join the New York Knicks?
The New York Knicks and Donovan Mitchell have reportedly begun trade talks again.
According to Shams Charania of the Atlantic, the Knicks and Utah Jazz have been going back and forth over the last week.
When Utah made it known they were open to trading Mitchell, the Knicks arose as a probable interested team, and they have been the frontrunners for him.
Hear what Jerry Ferrara would pitch to Donovan Mitchell to get him to join the New York Knicks.
@jerryferrara | @spidadmitchell | @talkhoops | @LegsESPN https://t.co/4yWZkFEm4x
Mitchell lives in New York, so the move would not be drastic for him. In fact, Ferrara believes the three-time All-Star wants to come to the Knicks and will not need convincing.
“I don’t think we need to pitch him," Ferrara said. "I think he wants to come. That’s pretty obvious”
Wanting to leave Utah makes sense for Mitchell. He held his stance as the main pillar, the other being Rudy Gobert, and one pillar cannot hold up an entire squad. If Mitchell couldn't find success with Gobert on the same squad, there may not be a chance of him finding it at all.
The problem seems to be what the Knicks want in return for Mitchell. The Knicks were willing to let go of Julius Randle, but the Jazz wanted RJ Barrett.
Stephen A Smith on SiriumXM w/ @RickKamlaSports this afternoon when asked about potential Mitchell deal:
"Utah didn't want Julius Randle, from what I'm told. They don't want him. The Knicks were willing to unload him. They want RJ Barrett. They want at least 6 1st-round picks." https://t.co/9Nn7DuwlZe
Shortly after Gobert was traded to the Timberwolves, the Jazz placed Mitchell on the trade block. At first it looked like the team was just curious about his worth, but as time went on, the reality sunk in that Utah might lose Mitchell.
Losing two of their biggest stars in the same offseason could be considered problematic, but Utah tried Gobert and Mitchell together and reached a ceiling. Moving on to rebuild with what they’d get from both players is a relatively good move.
Ferrara’s belief that winning a championship for the Knicks is three times a win from someone else is hyperbolic but is true even in exaggeration.
The Knicks have only won two championships (1970 and 1973). Being the player to revive this squad as a title contender would hold a lot of weight.
And as Ferrara said:
“Someone’s gonna win a title for the Knicks … Why not (Donovan Mitchell)?”