The New York Knicks are close to finalizing a trade for power forward Andrea Bargnani which would send Steve Novak and Marcus Camby to the Toronto Raptors a league source confirmed to ESPNNewYork.com.
Sources say in order to make the trade work the Knicks are going to have to sign and trade at least one player into the trade to make it work after July 10 when the league's annual moratorium is lifted. It has to be a player the Knicks had at the end of the season.
Earl Barron and Quentin Richardson are possibilities according to sources.
More from ESPNNewYork.comThe Knicks have a deal in place to acquire power forward Andrea Bargnani from the Raptors writes Jared Zwerling. Reax
Kenyon Martin however is not going to sign off on being signed and traded to Toronto sources say.
Camby's agent Rick Kaplan is on the record as saying of the trade It's going to happen.
The New York Times earlier reported the development and the newspaper also mentioned the trade would involve the Knicks giving up their first round pick in 2016.
It's worth noting that Bargnani is represented by Leon Rose whose clients include the Knicks' Carmelo Anthony and J.R. Smith.
In addition Knicks general manager Glen Grunwald is the former GM of the Raptors the team that drafted Camby with the second overall pick in 1996.
Camby however did not sound enthused about potentially heading back to Toronto.
It's unfortunate that I wasn't given a meaningful opportunity to contribute last season in New York. I was really looking forward to the upcoming year as a chance to show the organization what they missed out on last year and pushing our team towards the Finals he said in a statement through his agent.
I have nothing but positive things to say about the city of Toronto and its great fans having been drafted by the Raptors 17 years ago. Given that my goal at this point in my career is to have a shot at a championship however I'll have to evaluate my options going forward. I've enjoyed a great career and under the right circumstances I hope to continue making an impact in the league.
Camby and Novak's salaries total about $8.7 million for next season.
Bargnani 27 is due to make $23 million in the next two seasons. If the trade goes through he'll also receive a $500 000 bonus as part of a trade kicker. Financially the situation makes the potential trade a bit of a head scratcher as the Knicks are already over the luxury tax threshold. In addition Bargnani the No. 1 pick in the 2006 draft has missed 98 games in the past two seasons due to injuries. Last season he had to shut it down in early March because of an avulsion sprain in his right elbow.
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However Bargnani's expiring contract heading into the 2014 15 season will give the Knicks some cap flexibility in 2015 when also Anthony Amar'e Stoudemire and Tyson Chandler's salaries all come off the books.
Trading for Bargnani is also viewed as potential insurance if Smith decides to bolt in free agency. A few teams including the Detroit Pistons Milwaukee Bucks and Phoenix Suns are preparing to make higher offers than the Knicks to sign the Sixth Man Award winner. The Knicks can only offer $5.58 million with early Bird rights but they still feel like they have the upper hand. In fact Smith has agreed along with his family to first meet with Knicks coach Mike Woodson and the team's front office on Sunday night to discuss his future in New York.
If Bargnani joins the Knicks they'll be hoping that he and Stoudemire are able to get back on track in the health department. It's unclear at this point how Bargnani's role would affect Stoudemire's but one could start at power forward and the other could be the backup.
If the overall situation doesn't work out the Knicks will look bad again for giving away more draft picks which would prevent their future building. But the Bargnani move would represent the Knicks' focus to win a championship by 2015 and the pressure is further on with the Brooklyn Nets their Atlantic Division rival upgrading with Kevin Garnett Paul Pierce and Jason Terry.
Another league source said that the Knicks could also pursue point guard Aaron Brooks who was recently waived by the Houston Rockets. Rose who represents Brooks told ESPNNewYork.com earlier this month that Brooks would be a good fit in New York with his transition game and 3 point shooting two keys in the Knicks' offense looking ahead to next season.
The Knicks have been interested in Brooks in the past and they need to secure a backup point guard this offseason. They would like to re sign Pablo Prigioni but they have no assurances from him yet that he'll return to New York or head back to Spain where he played professionally for many years.
Jared Zwerling is a regular contributor to ESPNNewYork.com. Information from ESPN.com's Marc Stein and Brian Windhorst contributed to this report.
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