Retired Finnish player Petteri Koponen had a hilarious reaction when the New York Knicks acquired his rights in a Draft Day trade with the Dallas Mavericks to land German center Ariel Hukporti.
“I’m honored [Knicks],” he tweeted on X, formerly Twitter, “but I’m still going to honor my commitment with Spurs.”
Koponen, 36, has already transitioned to coaching since retiring in 2022. He had just accepted an offer to be part of the San Antonio Spurs coaching staff in this year’s NBA Summer League in Las Vegas.
“Of course, a financially ridiculous offer could change things plus I got the new hip! I’m ready,” he joked.
The full deal saw the Knicks sending Mavericks 51st overall pick Melvin Ajinca in exchange for 58th overall pick Ariel Hukporti, Koponen draft rights and cash consideration.
So why was Koponen, who would have been a 36-year-old rookie, included in the deal?
“Sometimes, to make an NBA trade work financially, teams have to include in their lowest asset as a throw-in, whether it be a player stashed overseas or the draft rights to someone who will never play in the NBA. In the Knicks’ case, it was the latter,” Front Office Sports’ Alex Schiffer wrote.
Petteri Koponen’s Long Route to Knicks
Koponen was the 30th overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers.
His long route to the Knicks started in 2004 when the Golden State Warriors acquired two future first-round draft picks from the Mavericks in a trade swapping former Duke star Christian Laetnner for center Erick Dampier. A year later, the Warriors sent one of those Mavericks’ first-round picks (2007) to the Denver Nuggets in the Eduardo Najera-Rodney White trade.
Then in 2006, the Sixers acquired the 2007 Mavericks first-round, along with the Nuggets’ first-round pick in the Allen Iverson trade.
That Mavericks’ first-round pick turned out to Koponen as the last pick of the first round in the 2007 NBA Draft. The Sixers shipped Koponen to Portland in exchange for 42nd overall pick Derrick Byars and cash consideration.
In 2011, the Trail Blazers traded Koponen’s rights to the Mavericks in a three-team trade with the Nuggets involving Raymond Felton and Andre Miller.
The Mavericks held Koponen’s rights for 13 years while he flourished as a mainstay of Finland’s national team and in the Euroleague.
Koponen held career averages of 7.5 points and 1.8 assists in six seasons in the Euroleague. He was a knockdown shooter, sinking 46% of his 3-pointers across 155 career games.
The closest he came to playing in the NBA was in 2008 when he played for the Washington Wizards Summer League team.
Knicks’ Draft Day Trade Frenzy
The Knicks entered the 2024 NBA Draft with the No. 24, 25 and 38 picks. But they ended up with four rookies — No. 25 Pacome Dadiet, No. 34 Tyler Kolek, No. 56 Kevin McCullar Jr., No. 58 Hukporti — and Koponen’s rights plus cash considerations and an additional three future second-round picks after the dizzying wheeling and dealing.
In the first round, the Knicks selected Pacome Dadiet as the 25th overall pick. They traded the 24th overall pick (Kyshawn George) for the Washington Wizards’ 26th and 51st overall picks. Then they quickly shipped the No. 26 pick (Dillon Jones) to the Oklahoma City Thunder for five future second-round picks.
On the second day of the two-day NBA Draft, the Knicks acquired Kolek from Portland for three future second-round picks and 2015 second-round pick Daniel Diez’s draft rights.
They also traded the 38th overall pick Ajay Mitchell to the Thunder for the 40th overall pick Oso Ighadaro and cash considerations. Ighodaro was rerouted to the Phoenix Suns for McCullar and a future second-round pick.
Then finally, the Knicks made the trade with the Mavericks for Hukporti and Koponen’s draft rights.
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