The New York Knicks will be one of the top contenders in the Eastern Conference during the 2025-26 NBA season. After making a run to the Eastern Conference Finals last season before being defeated by the Indiana Pacers, the Knicks have a much clearer path.
Due to injuries, the conference is wide open heading into the upcoming season. With the Boston Celtics down after Jayson Tatum’s injury and the Pacers dealing with a full year without Tyrese Haliburton, things look good for New York.
Looking at the roster, there are some areas the Knicks could look to improve. They could consider looking into a move to improve offensively.
Austin Reaves #15 of the Los Angeles Lakers dribbles against the Houston Rockets during the first half at Toyota Center on January 05, 2025 in Houston, Texas.
Austin Reaves #15 of the Los Angeles Lakers dribbles against the Houston Rockets during the first half at Toyota Center on January 05, 2025 in Houston, Texas.
Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images
With that in mind, a blockbuster idea has been suggested as a possibility for New York.
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Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix believes that the Knicks could be a future suitor for Los Angeles Lakers star Austin Reaves.
“I might look at a team like New York, that has Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby, three-and-d types of guys,” Mannix said. “The Knicks under Mike Brown, looking to become more diverse offensively, maybe they’d be interested in something like that.”
Moving into the future, the Lakers will be fully focused on keeping Luka Doncic and building around him long-term. Reaves has the 2025-26 season and a player option for the 2026-27 season remaining on his current contract.
It seems very likely that Reaves will opt out of his contract next offseason to pursue a bigger long-term deal.
Should that happen, New York could make a play for him. The Knicks could even consider getting aggressive and trying to pull off a trade with Los Angeles to acquire him and then extend him earlier than next offseason.
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Reaves is coming off of the best year of his NBA career to date. He played in 73 games during the 2024-25 campaign, averaging 20.2 points per game to go along with 5.8 assists, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.1 steals. In addition, Reaves shot 46 percent from the floor and 37.7 percent from three-point range.
New York has never been shy about pursuing aggressive moves. If the Knicks view Reaves as a good fit alongside Jalen Brunson and a player they could build around moving forward, they would not hesitate to pursue him.
All of that being said, it will be interesting to see what comes in the future for both New York and Reaves.
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