The New York Knicks traded Kevin Knox and one first-round pick for Cam Reddish, Solomon Hill, and a second-rounder.
The NBA loves buzz words. Wingspan. Upside. 3-and-D wing. Each of these – sometimes appropriate – cliches is typically used to describe Cam Reddish.
This week, the New York Knicks traded for Reddish, sending Kevin Knox and a first-round pick (via Charlotte) to the Atlanta Hawks. New York also got Solomon Hill and a 2025 second-round pick (via Brooklyn).
The Knicks don’t fleece teams in trades very often – the last time it happened, Bill Simmons was in college – but this one is a straight-up steal. It’s a huge win for Leon Rose and his front office.
If there was one criticism you could make about this front office, it’s that they’ve been very conservative. This trade is important because it shows that they’re interested in more than just adding draft picks. They saw the opportunity to add a talented young player, and they did just that.
Background
You might’ve heard something about Reddish being college teammates RJ Barrett and Zion Williamson at Duke University.
Don’t worry, you’ll probably hear about that a couple hundred more times before the season’s over. Barrett spoke glowingly about the reunion with his “Duke brother,” and anything that makes RJ Barrett happy is good for the New York Knicks. The RJ-Cam-Zion reunion in New York will be a storyline until we all get sick of it.
Reddish took a backseat at Duke to Williamson and Barrett. He was primarily a spot-up shooter, with more than 60 percent of his field goal attempts coming from beyond the arc.
It probably wasn’t the ideal role for him, but Reddish’s Duke team finished 329th in the nation in team 3-point percentage, so they needed all the help they could get. Reddish may have been just a 33 percent shooter from downtown, but that was basically sharpshooter level for that squad.
Reddish, 22 years old, didn’t have an outstanding season at Duke but he was still the 10th pick in the 2019 NBA draft.
His fellow prospects – who he’s been playing against since he was in high school – voted Reddish to have the best career of anyone in their draft class. Before the “disappointing” season at Duke, Reddish was a consensus top-five recruit.
How Cam Got Here
Following a storybook season in Atlanta, the wheels have come off. So have the engine and doors too. There’s something wrong in Atlanta that their struggles this season have brought to light again.
Following the trade, it was revealed that Reddish had requested a trade over the summer. General manager Travis Schlenk worked with Reddish to find the right deal.
Reddish was stuck behind talented wings like Bogdan Bogdanovic and DeAndre Hunter in Atlanta. He is looking for an expanded role and more touches with this trade.
If you’re thinking Reddish is being greedy, know this: he isn’t the only Hawk who wants a different role in the offense.
It’s been reported that John Collins is unhappy, and being in trade rumors probably isn’t going to cheer him up.
Reddish is also looking to get paid this offseason – something the Hawks weren’t going to do.
Reddish signed with powerhouse agency Klutch Sports in anticipation of the upcoming negotiations. You know that sent other teams into a widespread panic about what he’ll ask for on an extension.
But not Leon Rose. The former agent will have a big decision to make on both Reddish and Barrett during the offseason.
How Cam Can Help
Reddish looks the part in a league driven by wings who can handle the ball, shoot from deep, and defend multiple positions. He’s 6-foot-8 with a 7-foot-1 wingspan (there’s that word), with an improving jumper, and his superior defense could force Tom Thibodeau into some tough lineup decisions.
New York desperately needs a spark on both ends of the court. They currently rank 23rd in offensive rating and a very un-Thibsy 15th in defensive rating.
Reddish is still a work in progress on offense, but he should make a huge difference on defense.
The Knicks need Reddish to provide some of the defensive energy the team’s been missing without Reggie Bullock. Reddish is someone who can, like Bullock, pick up the other team’s best player. Reddish may not be as consistently effective as Bullock, but he certainly has the potential.
The Knicks added Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier thinking that the talent upgrade on offense was worth the sacrifice on defense. It seemed like the right move at the time.
Reddish definitely has his struggles on offense. He takes a lot of midrange shots for a guy who doesn’t make many of them and like most young players he struggles at the rim.
According to Cleaning the Glass, 30 percent of Reddish’s FGAs this season have been from the midrange (74th percentile for forwards). But he’s only converted on 30 percent of those attempts (18th percentile).
Reddish’s effective field goal percentage is 48.2 percent – a less than remarkable career-high – and he is shooting a putrid 42.1 percent on two-pointers.
But the Knicks don’t need Reddish to score 20 points per game. They need him to keep doing what he’s been doing in Atlanta this season. Reddish is shooting a career-high 37.9 percent from 3-point range and 48 percent on corner threes, per Cleaning the Glass.
That’s a dramatic improvement from last season when he shot 26.2 percent from 3 and 32 percent from the corners. Reddish is also a career 83.3 percent free throw shooting – including 90 percent this season – showing potential for even further growth with his outside shot.
The most encouraging stat is Reddish’s catch and shoot threes. He’s currently converting his catch and shoot triples at a 41.9 percent clip. Yes, that’s another career-high.
Even if Reddish’s shooting tails off a bit, his defense leads to transition buckets.
Reddish averages 2.6 deflections per game -Nerlens Noel is the only Knick who averages more – and he’s currently in the 70th percentile of efficiency on transition plays. Translation: He’s good in the fast break. This means he should be a great fit with the Obi Toppin, Immanuel Quickley, Derrick Rose unit.
The work that Reddish clearly put in on his jump shot during the offseason says a lot about him as a player and a person. He seems like he’s going to be a Tom Thibodeau guy.
The Reddish trade isn’t the blockbuster move that Knicks fans and the front office are seeking but championship teams aren’t built without moves like this one. It’s smart to take advantage of a desperate team. As a fan, it feels nice not being the desperate team.
Stay tuned to KnicksFanTV.com for the latest Knicks news, rumors, and recaps throughout the 2021-22 NBA season. And in case you missed it, check out the analysis and fan reactions for when the Knicks defeated the Dallas Mavericks!
