What would a Knicks trade for CJ McCollum look like?

We’re mere days from the NBA trade deadline, and the Knicks, sure to be an active participant, find themselves linked to yet another trade candidate.

CJ McCollum, premier scorer and No. 2 man to Damian Lillard in Portland, is available as the Blazers trade key pieces, and SNY’s Ian Begley reports that New York is interested.

McCollum has never made an All-Star team, but is consistently a late snub behind his 20+ points per game scoring on efficient shooting from all over the floor. Last year was arguably his best, when he averaged 23.1 points, 4.7 assists and 3.9 rebounds on 50.9 percent shooting from two and 40.2 percent from three. He’s a supremely talented ball-handler and pull-up shooter, capable of hurting defenses off the ball as well.

McCollum has been the second option on a Western Conference playoff team for over six years now, but without any championship success, the Trail Blazers appear ready to move on and retool around other players. They’re in danger of falling out of the play-in tournament with Lillard still recovering from injury, and have already begun selling off with their trade of Normal Powell and Robert Covington.

In McCollum, the Knicks see an All-Star level guard to add to their core and potentially lead it. With Julius Randle’s scoring falling flat, McCollum can take over that lead creator role, especially out of the pick-and-roll. He doesn’t add anything to the defense and doesn’t get to the free throw line enough, but it’s understandable to want his offense with the team currently in 24th on that end.

His fit with Randle and an evolving RJ Barrett should be smooth on paper. All three can create primarily or secondarily, and McCollum isn’t the alpha star who would immediately demand control of the offense.

McCollum is 30 years old and signed to a $33 million per year salary through 2023-24, while coming with his own injury history. Those are the risks the Knicks will have to weigh when deciding what…