B/R Staff: Top Landing Spots for NBA Trade Deadline Targets | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors

As soon as veteran combo guard-forward, rim runner-Rennaissance man Bruce Brown wound up on the Toronto Raptors, it felt like it would be little more than a way station.

The Raptors are at the outset of a rebuild, while Brown is a 27-year-old whose versatility just proved crucial for the Denver Nuggets’ 2023 title run.

And though some of his advanced numbers suggest he’s taken a step back this season, you don’t have to think too hard to remember his unique combination of ball-handling, perimeter defense and timely shooting coming in handy against other contenders.

One contender (or fringe contender), apparently, remembers. Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer wrote: “The [New York] Knicks appear more interested in Toronto guard Bruce Brown Jr., for whom the Raptors are seeking some return in the range of a first-round pick.”

If that’s all it takes, and assuming New York doesn’t decide to expend more elsewhere, this almost feels like a no-brainer.

The Knicks already have plenty of backcourt versatility from Jalen Brunson, Donte DiVincenzo and Josh Hart. Adding the 6’4″ Brown to the mix might make the team dangerously small, but he and the aforementioned current Knicks all play bigger than they are.

And Brown could restore some of the playmaking lost when Immanuel Quickley was traded to the Toronto Raptors.