I think these are the types of questions the Knicks should be asking in weighing the virtue of an Ellis trade. If Monta Ellis were a free agent after this season, would you prefer to see the Knicks pay his deal or give David Lee a 5 year deal for $45-50 million? If Monta Ellis were a free agent after this season, would you prefer to see the Knicks give him 4 years, $44 million, or would you prefer to see the Knicks give Rudy Gay, say, 5 years, $60 million?ģ. If Monta Ellis were a free agent in the 2010 market, would you be happy if the Knicks got him for 4 years, $44 million?Ģ. Let’s assume for a moment that the Knicks are only able to add one max free agent this summer for whatever reason (two or all of the big 3 sign with other teams remaining players out there don’t warrant the max or don’t want to sign with the Knicks etc.).ġ. In addition to all that, I’d just like to propose the following: And I agree with Dan that, despite the $1-2 million extra it would cost to bring Ellis into the fold, it might be worth it simply to add another player to the roster that other teams might value in the future. I think Dan framed the Monta Ellis situation very well earlier with respect to the impact an Ellis acquisition would have on the 2010 cap and the Knicks’ cache of tradable assets.