When the center Isaiah Hartenstein left the New York Knicks to join OKC, the Knicks fanbase expected that Mitchell Robinson would fill in the shoes of the player. The 26-year-old, who just got back from the potentially season-ending ankle injury, was supposed to support Brunson and his Villanova alums in the center. However, as per SNY’s insider Ian Begley, the Knicks owner James Dolan is looking for a bigger fish than Robinson due to the latter’s ankle injury woes that have been haunting him for the past six years.

As per Ian Begley’s latest report, “Clint Capela, Atlanta, was the one big that the Knicks had checked in on.” The 30-year-old veteran is currently on a two-year vet extension with the Hawks until the end of the 2024-25 season, having a total worth of about $45.8 million. The NBA insider was, however, not sure how much the trade talks had developed between the respective teams as he added, “I kind of don’t know how far talks went, and I don’t know if they’re active at this very moment. But they did check in on Capela.”

If they manage to land Capela, the Knicks, who missed the Conference Finals last season due to injury troubles, might recover half, if not completely, from Hartenstein’s departure. The Hawks center averaged 11.5 points and 10.6 RPG in addition to his 1.5 blocks per game last season. For an athlete playing on both ends, these stats are much better compared to Isaiah, who averaged 7.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, and a little above one block per game.

The New York Knicks might get a gem after losing the star in the middle. But the question arises: who will be the one to depart if the trade actually materializes?

Player that the New York Knicks might send away to get Clint Capela in a potential trade

While Begley was giving info on the Capela trade, he inferred that Michell Robinson might be the one to be traded to the Atlanta Hawks, along with some draft picks to get Capela. Robinson, who chose to undergo surgery last season, which ultimately gave a chance to Isaiah, has returned. There is no doubt that the 26-year-old is better at securing boards, with an average of 9.4 and 8.5 in the previous two years respectively. But the injury, at times, takes away the flow of the player’s game.

While Begley acknowledged that the Knicks were earlier active in the trade talks, there has been no further development on the table as James Dolan and Co. have not come up with an update regarding the trade. It is too early to say that the trade talks are off the table since there are months left before the training camp for the next season gets underway. Anything can happen in trade seasons where winds change every five minutes.

Hoping for a break in the center, Robinson and Capela could come up together for the New York Knicks. However, the speculated center platoon is unpragmatic due to Capela’s lucrative vet contracts. What do you all think? Will James Dolan go for a trade and move forward with his safe center, risking the playoff endeavors?