Knicks set on re-signing OG Anunoby after Mikal Bridges trade; Isaiah Hartenstein may be tougher, per reports

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The New York Knicks swung a massive trade for Mikal Bridges late Tuesday night, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski among multiple reports. Among the immediate reactions: What does this mean for New York's chances of re-signing OG Anunoby, whom it gave up a similarly large haul to bring in last season.

In the Bridges deal, the Knicks acquire the starting two-way wing while sending Brooklyn Nets a total of five future first-round picks (New York's unprotected selections in 2025, 2027, 2029 and 2031 plus Milwaukee's 2025 pick, protected for picks 1-4), as well as an unprotected 2028 pick swap and Bogdan Bogdanović. 

If you need to take a breath after reading that, you're not alone. It is a massive trade package for a guy who has never even been an All-Star, but in the context of this Knicks team and what Bridges adds in the way of elite perimeter defense, shooting and secondary creation, it makes sense under one condition:

The Knicks successfully bringing Anunoby back.

Good news on that front as New York remains "determined" to re-sign Anunoby, who is an unrestricted free agent, per Wojnarowski among multiple reports.

The good news on Anunoby might be bad news on Isaiah Hartenstein, however, as there is a substantial market for the big man and the Knicks will likely need to sacrifice somewhere to make their roster work financially.

Of course, none of this is set and stone yet, and with the potential for additional moves to come, small details can make a big difference when it comes to roster construction. 

The Knicks are undoubtedly well into the salary cap number crunching, but as of now, the gist is this: Given that the Knicks took back more money in the Bridges deal (Bridges earns more than Bogdanovic), they are hard-capped at the first apron, meaning they cannot go above a projected mark of $178.7 million in total salary. Here's where they stand after with Bridges' contract now included:

As of right now, I've got the Knicks $45.2M under the first apron for eight players and the two 2024 first-round picks.

New York will have to get to at least 14 players under contract eventually.

That's tight to fit in OG Anunoby at his market value and to fill out the roster.…

— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) June 26, 2024

If the Knicks wind up hard-capped at the first apron, it's going to be a squeeze just to bring back Anunoby. That makes Hartenstein, who will no doubt command significant money on the open market given his variety of suitors, a likely casualty.

Still, that's not a certainty. New York has reportedly explored trading Mitchell Robinson; if you're trying to be optimistic and prefer Hartenstein over Robinson, that might mean the Knicks are still figuring out ways to keep one of their breakout stars. 

One of those avenues might be to ultimately include a few also-rans in the final package for Bridges, which would make the incoming and outgoing salary even -- thus hard-capping the Knicks at the second apron (because they will have aggregated salaries, which carries its own cost) rather than the first apron. That would leave the Knicks with about $11 million more to spend before hitting the $189.5 million second apron. 

A little tidbit: Bogdanovic for Bridges would mean the Knicks taking on money in this trade, which would hard cap them at the first apron. If they found a way to guarantee Diakite and Jeffries and include them in the deal to Brooklyn, they would not be hard capped.

— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) June 26, 2024

Losing Hartenstein would be no picnic. He would give the Knicks probably the best defensive and rebounding center rotation in the league if paired with Robinson moving forward, and that's to say nothing of the mutual insurance they provide for one another. Size matters again in the NBA. 

Regardless, keeping Anunoby is rightfully priority number one. If the Knicks can't do that, they just essentially traded eight first-round picks (three to Toronto for Anunoby last December and five to Brooklyn on Tuesday) for Bridges, who would only serve as a replacement Anunoby. Such a move would not push the Knicks any closer to contention than they already stood. 

Losing Anunoby under any circumstances, after trading three picks for him, would be a gut shot. Losing him after this deal for Bridges would be an outright disaster.

Leon Rose and his staff are obviously doing everything they can to make sure that doesn't happen, and given Anunoby is represented by Rose's old agency (CAA), there is a high level of confidence he will remain with New York. Still, until it's official, there are surely some nervous fans waiting to see whether his potential departure will dampen the excitement around this Bridges trade. 

Knicks set on re-signing OG Anunoby after Mikal Bridges trade; Isaiah Hartenstein may be tougher, per reports

Knicks set on re-signing OG Anunoby after Mikal Bridges trade; Isaiah Hartenstein may be tougher, per reports

Knicks set on re-signing OG Anunoby after Mikal Bridges trade; Isaiah Hartenstein may be tougher, per reports

Knicks set on re-signing OG Anunoby after Mikal Bridges trade; Isaiah Hartenstein may be tougher, per reports

Knicks set on re-signing OG Anunoby after Mikal Bridges trade; Isaiah Hartenstein may be tougher, per reports