Balkman traded to Denver

Renaldo Balkman was traded to the Denver Nuggets for Taurean Green, Booby Jones, and a 2010 second round round draft pick. Green and Jones don't have guaranteed contracts next season and will both likely be waived. It's rare to find a quality player in the second round, so basically this trade was a salary dump to help the Knicks get under the cap for 2010. If the Knicks kept Balkman, they would have had to renew his contract after this season. I like Balkman a lot, who specializes in defense and rebounding, but he is a poor shooter and may have struggled to thrive in Mike D'Antoni's offense which relies on long-range shooting. The Knicks also have four other small forwards on the roster, Quentin Richardson, Wilson Chandler, Danilo Gallinari, and Jared Jefferies, who are all better shooters than Renaldo.