Knicks Trade Rumors: Oft-injured Mitchell Robinson predicted to cut ties in deal for $9,900,000 veteran

The New York Knicks made two of the biggest moves this offseason, acquiring Mikal Bridges and trading for Karl-Anthony Towns. They're now sitting on the No. 3 spot in the Eastern Conference, but they know they might need to make another move or two to get past the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers.

With that in mind, Bleacher Report's Zach Buckley suggested on Thursday that they could move on from the often-injured Mitchell Robinson to get Jonas Valanciunas.

In this scenario, the Knicks would also send the Wizards a 2025 and 2026 second-round pick:

"Robinson had ankle surgery in May and has been sidelined ever since," Buckley wrote. ... "Those same concerns obviously wouldn't exist with Valančiūnas, who's been productive and durable just about everywhere he's been."

Valanciunas, who's making $9,9 million a year (per Spotrac), could be a serviceable pick-and-roll player and interior presence both coming off the bench or starting next to Towns.

Robinson has been a disruptive defender and rebounder when healthy, but he's missed plenty of time with different ailments in his career. There's still no timetable for his return.

Knicks could also pursue other players

The Knicks have already shown that they won't hesitate to be active and pull the trigger to get some deals done. They don't have a deep rotation right now, and even though Tom Thibodeau doesn't usually trust his bench to play heavy minutes, they could certainly use some fresh legs.

With that in mind, CBS Sports' James Herbert listed Larry Nance Jr., Torrey Craig and Jake LaRavia as potential trade targets for them.

All of them certainly fit the mold for Thibodeau. They're athletic and play strong defense, and they don't need to have the rock in their hands to get into a rhythm or get many touches on offense.

The Knicks are just one game behind the Celtics for the No. 2 seed in the East.

And with the Cleveland Cavaliers going through a mini-slump and struggling with injuries, the top spot might be up for grabs in the next couple of weeks.