Knicks Trade Rumors: Eric Bledsoe, the Nuggets' picks, and uhhhh Frank Kaminsky

The magic of pre-draft rumors is that they exclude one another. Almost everything you read -- teams picking certain players or making certain trades -- won't happen, because each team can only do so much, and if one or two of the things happen, the rest cannot. This year, the trade rumor press has printed us almost nothing of substance. It's a lot of sources -- sources who leak for a reason -- telling reporters the Knicks are considering something vaguely plausible, and reporters pinning their own hypothetical names to the vagueness.

... basically, none of what follows gets my heart beating. Not because it's uninteresting, but because a carefully worded semi-rumor on June 22, even from a reputable reporter, doesn't ring that loudly.

Shut up and get to the things. Okay. Here are the things:

Sean Deveney of Sporting News reported two things relevant to the Knicks:

1. The Knicks love Frank Kaminsky (which we knew even before they brought him in for a workout) and have considered trading down for him (knew that) and would even consider drafting him with the 4th pick. That last bit is something we've thought and joked about, but I reckon this is the first time it's been outright reported with sources.

Trading down for Kaminsky could be okay depending on the deal, but it wouldn't be my choice. Based on every single mock draft and rumor and workout we've seen, drafting Kaminsky fourth would be buying a nickel with a dime. I've already expressed my thoughts on that.

2.

The Suns had talks with the Knicks about dealing the fourth pick for point guard Eric Bledsoe and the No. 13 pick, but Phoenix has not been limited to the Knicks in that regard. The Suns have been dangling Bledsoe in trade offers this offseason and are likely to continue to do so after the draft if Bledsoe is not moved this week, sources confirmed.

"Had talks" could mean weeks ago, but there you go; there's someone actually reporting that Chad Ford's trade idea has been discussed. (Ford, some people told me, suggested the same on Alan Hahn's podcast.)

I love Bledsoe, but 13 is much too low for me. Maybe that's a product of reading so much about guys projected in the top 7 or 8 that I don't wanna think about guys projected to go later, but ... well, that's how I feel.

And here's Ken Berger of CBS, also choosing his words carefully:

One such deal to move back a few spots and choose among those players, a rival executive said, could involve Denver, which owns the seventh pick. As part of the deal, the Nuggets could relinquish their right to swap 2016 first-rounders with New York. Better yet, Denver has two protected first-rounders incoming next year from Memphis and Portland. The Blazers' pick, lottery-protected in '16 and '17, could replenish the first-rounder that the Knicks sent out in the Andrea Bargnani trade.

...

Though the talks have yet to gain traction, Sacramento and Denver have discussed a deal involving point guard Ty Lawson, league sources say. Kings coach George Karl is desperate to find a starting point guard, and pressure is coming from owner Vivek Ranadive to make the playoffs this season. A deal sending the Kings' No. 6 pick to Denver for Lawson would give the Nuggets the sixth and seventh picks to include in discussions with the Knicks for the fourth pick -- or, simply jumpstart their ever-evolving youth movement with two top-10 players in a talented draft.

Note that only the beginning parts are sourced: A rival executive thinks the Knicks could deal with Denver, and the Kings have talked to Denver about Ty Lawson. The rest is imagination, but at least it's the funnest, most Knicks-friendly imagination This sentence previously, stupidly said Berger was wrong about the un-swapping of the picks being a possibility, but that was stupid of me to say and it is indeed a possibility worth considering. The 7th pick and what would surely be a late first-rounder next year is interesting. The 6th *and* 7th picks for the 4th would deeeelight me.

But yeah, those are just some ideas. The more chatterin' I hear, the more I think the Knicks will just chill and draft someone unsurprising.