Trade grades for Raptors-Knicks deal: OG Anunoby heads to New York for RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley

The Knicks and Raptors took a break in their dispute over some allegedly stolen files to agree to a trade as we finish out 2023. New York is moving RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley, and the Pistons’ 2024 second-round pick to Toronto in exchange for OG Anunoby. The Raptors will also send Precious Achiuwa and Malachi Flynn to the Knicks.

For years, we’ve wondered if the Raptors would finally move on from Anunoby, who has been thrown all over the trade block and been on a VIP tour of the trade rumor mill. Now the Knicks are bringing him in to be one of the top perimeter defenders for them. It’s a lot to give up, but let’s bust out the red ink and throw down some trade grades.

Knicks receive OG Anunoby, Precious Achiuwa, Malachi Flynn

There is some risk involved for the Knicks here, as they gave up a significant amount for Anunoby. Barrett had a hot shooting start to the season and then came crashing back to earth in December with a putrid shooting month. I’m still a believer in his game and think a change of scenery can do him some good. It was tough for him to get a scoring rhythm with Julius Randle jab-stepping possessions into late-clock situations. He can be more of a playmaker in a different place, but we also need to see consistency in his shot for any of that to work out.

Also, Quickley is one of the best bench players in the league, and he’s definitely capable of being a starting point guard for a good team. The signing of Donte DiVincenzo this summer made it easier for the Knicks to send out Quickley and not deal with his restricted free agency this summer. Getting Malachi Flynn to throw into the guard rotation is nice insurance, and Precious Achiuwa is a much needed big body with the Mitchell Robinson injury. Achiuwa can do some things with the ball, but he’s a little undersized for being a primary big.

Anunoby will likely be a free agent this summer. He has a player option for next season around $19 million, and he can make a lot more than that annually by hitting the unrestricted free-agent market. The Knicks probably wouldn’t make this trade giving up Quickley without feeling pretty confident they can re-sign Anunoby this summer. (Anunoby’s agent is the son of Knicks president Leon Rose, so there should be confidence). Anunoby has the potential to fit in better than Barrett did, if he’s willing to slide into the hierarchy of Knicks possessions behind Jalen Brunson and Randle.

Anunoby is a great finisher around the rim and inside of 10 feet. He can attack closeouts, and you have to respect his outside shooting. He’s a career 37.5 percent shooter from deep, and he’s right in line with that percentage this season (37.4). He’s usually a 40 percent shooter on catch-and-shoot 3-pointers, so having him play off of Randle and Brunson on offense should lead to great opportunities for him when the ball swings.

The reason you get him, though, is his defense. He’s one of the most elite perimeter defenders in the NBA. He can defend one through four on the court and make life miserable for his matchup. He’s great at navigating screens, and the Knicks really need a stopper on the perimeter to throw at opponents at the end of games. Anunoby is quick enough to guard smaller guards, and strong enough to handle big wings and forwards. The Knicks add a more reliable shooter and an All-Defense level player. They just have to make sure they re-sign him this summer, assuming he doesn’t exercise that player option.

Grade: B+ (higher if they re-sign him)

Raptors receive RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley, 2024 second-round pick (Detroit)

While Masai Ujiri has been seeking multiple first-round picks for Anunoby in previous trade rumblings, he decided to settle on two key rotation players from the Knicks. I potentially really like this deal for the Raptors. It incurs far less risk for them than just hoping Anunoby stays in free agency down the road.

As I noted above, I think there’s more to Barrett’s game than what he showed in New York. I’ve always thought he could be a good playmaker in a more free-flowing system, which is something Darko Rajaković would love to install as the Raptors’ approach.

We saw Barrett’s assist percentage nearly double (10.1 to 18.3 percent) this season when Randle wasn’t on the floor. Too often, Barrett was asked to create out of stagnation, and that’s not his strong suit. We’ll see if he and the Raptors can avoid that same fate. While his 3-point shot has been all over the place from month-to-month this season, his free-throw percentage has improved and he’s shooting better on midrange shots. Those should be indicators that the 3-point shot will improve. But we only saw that in November.

The Raptors will need Barrett to be more efficient offensively than he did in New York. He returns home to Canada, and he’s signed for $83 million over the next three seasons after this one. They have time to figure out the right balance for the 23-year old.

Quickley could be the real find in this deal for the Raptors. After losing Fred VanVleet this summer and Kyle Lowry before that, the Raptors have needed a point guard. Dennis Schröder is the stopgap they picked up cheaply in free agency. It will cost big money to retain Quickley in restricted free agency, but he’s worth it. He can shoot the ball, and he’s a good enough finisher around the basket. He changes speeds so perfectly. The question is whether or not he can run a team as a playmaker and use his scoring threat to discombobulate the defense.

He’s never been much of a playmaker for others, mostly because his role was to come off the bench and score. Now he gets to show all of his point guard skills and increase setting up teammates. Scottie Barnes is the primary playmaker, but Quickley will need to pick up some of the onus in helping create a balanced attack the Raptors haven’t quite figured out. Eventually, it should send Schröder into a backup role as the primary guard off the bench, if it doesn’t happen right away.

There won’t be any real threat of losing him in restricted free agency because the Raptors can match any offer sheet he signs. So, this is a big-time long-term investment in Quickley and Barrett. The Raptors also get a soft first-round pick since they’re acquiring the second-round pick of the Pistons. It will likely be the 31st pick in 2024, so it’s essentially a first-round pick without the contract guarantees of a first-round pick.

Grade: A

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More coverage of the trade

The Athletic: Raptors trading OG Anunoby to Knicks for RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley
John Hollinger: Raptors-Knicks trade favors Toronto, but made too much sense for either side to pass up

(Photo of OG Anunoby and Immanuel Quickley: Mark Blinch / Getty Images)