![\"Naji](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GettyImages-2187235028-e1769381088551.jpg\")
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\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGetty\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
Naji Marshall of the Dallas Mavericks is defended by Karl-Anthony Towns of the New York Knicks.<\/p>\n
The New York Knicks<\/a>\u2019 lack of remaining draft capital is increasingly shaping \u2014 and limiting \u2014 their trade deadline options as they look to move French forward Guerschon Yabusele<\/a> before the Feb. 5 cutoff.<\/p>\n According to ClutchPoints\u2019 Brett Siegel, New York has explored several avenues involving Yabusele, but rising market prices and roster constraints have made meaningful returns difficult to secure.<\/p>\n Knicks Priced Out of Wing Market as Demand Surges<\/p>\n One avenue the Knicks investigated was Dallas Mavericks<\/a> wing Naji Marshall<\/a>. However, that pursuit quickly stalled as leaguewide demand for two-way wings continues to spike.<\/p>\n \u201cDue to the lack of wing talent on the trade market this season and the demand for such players increasing, Marshall is expected to drive a significant market,\u201d Siegel reported<\/a>. \u201cSome league personnel suggest Dallas may be able to fetch a first-round pick when all is said and done.\u201d<\/p>\n That price point effectively removes New York from contention. The Knicks have just one first-round pick available to trade \u2014 a 2026 selection via Washington that is top-eight protected. With the Wizards<\/a> trending toward a high lottery finish, that pick will convey into two future second-round selections.<\/p>\n New York has already exhausted most of its draft capital in acquiring Mikal Bridges<\/a> and Karl-Anthony Towns<\/a>, leaving little flexibility to compete in bidding wars for coveted wings.<\/p>\n Hard Cap Forces Knicks Into Creative Trade Structures<\/p>\n With Marshall likely unattainable, the Knicks have pivoted to smaller, cap-conscious deals involving Yabusele.<\/p>\n \u201cAs the NBA<\/a> trade deadline on Feb. 5 nears, the New York Knicks have actively been discussing several options on the trade market involving French forward Guerschon Yabusele,\u201d Siegel wrote. \u201cThe\u00a0San Antonio Spurs<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0New Orleans Pelicans<\/a> are two teams with which the Knicks have recently held extensive dialogue.\u201d<\/p>\n Because New York is operating under a second-apron hard cap, it cannot take back more salary than it sends out. As a result, the Knicks have explored packaging Yabusele with a minimum-salary player \u2014 most notably second-year guard Pac\u00f4me Dadiet<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 to make deals financially workable.<\/p>\n Spurs Cool on Jeremy Sochan Talks<\/p>\n One of New York\u2019s primary targets in those discussions has been Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan<\/a>, whose defensive versatility and slashing ability fit the Knicks\u2019 profile.<\/p>\n \u201cSochan\u2019s defensive versatility at either forward position and his slashing ability on offense would fit with New York\u2019s style of play,\u201d Siegel reported. \u201cBut there has been internal pushback in San Antonio to the idea of trading him.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite falling out of the Spurs\u2019 regular rotation at times, San Antonio continues to value Sochan\u2019s long-term upside and has not signaled a willingness to move him before the deadline. That resistance has caused talks to cool, even with Yabusele\u2019s connection to Victor Wembanyama<\/a> from their time together with the French national team.<\/p>\n While the Spurs still want added frontcourt depth behind Wembanyama, Siegel noted they are now evaluating alternative options across the market \u2014 including potential deals using Kelly Olynyk<\/a>\u2019s $13.4 million expiring contract.<\/p>\n New York Expands Search to Pelicans Guards, Young Bigs<\/p>\n With San Antonio proving difficult, New York has also engaged New Orleans in trade dialogue.<\/p>\n According to Siegel, the Knicks have maintained interest in defensive-minded guard\u00a0Jose Alvarado<\/a>, though competition is stiff. The Rockets, Pistons and Timberwolves<\/a> have also held discussions with New Orleans about Alvarado\u2019s availability.<\/p>\n Beyond guards, New York has also shown interest in young center Yves Missi<\/a>.<\/p>\n Speaking on\u00a0SNY\u2019s The Putback,\u00a0HoopsHype\u2019s NBA insider Michael Scotto\u00a0confirmed that Knicks officials have made exploratory calls on both players.<\/p>\n \u201cYou don\u2019t make calls on these guys unless there\u2019s some level of interest,\u201d\u00a0Scotto said<\/a>, adding that Missi has drawn attention from several teams seeking frontcourt depth.<\/p>\n That list of suitors is growing.<\/p>\n \u201cYves Missi is generating significant interest on the trade market once the Pelicans were open to fielding offers,\u201d Forbes\u2019 Evan Sidery reported<\/a>. \u201cThe Celtics, Knicks, Lakers<\/a>, Pacers, Raptors and Warriors are among the teams who recently inquired on Missi.\u201d<\/p>\n Knicks Face Narrow Path Ahead of Deadline<\/p>\n With limited draft assets, a hard cap, and rising market prices, the Knicks\u2019 options appear increasingly narrow as the deadline approaches.<\/p>\n While Yabusele remains a logical outgoing piece, New York\u2019s ability to turn him into meaningful rotation help may depend on patience, creativity \u2014 or a softening market in the final days before Feb. 5.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tAlder Almo<\/a> is a sports journalist covering the NBA for Heavy.com. He has more than 20 years of experience in local and international media, including broadcast, print and digital. He previously covered the Knicks for Empire Sports Media and the NBA for Off the Glass. Alder is from the Philippines and is now based in Jersey City, New Jersey. More about Alder Almo<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMore Heavy on Knicks\n\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty Naji Marshall of the Dallas Mavericks is defended by Karl-Anthony Towns of the New York Knicks. The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":257644,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[85,46,105],"class_list":{"0":"post-257643","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports","8":"tag-il","9":"tag-israel","10":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257643","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=257643"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257643\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/257644"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=257643"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=257643"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=257643"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}