Landry Shamet Trade Rumors Explode: Why Multiple NBA Contenders Want the Elite Sharpshooter

Landry Shamet’s name echoed through Madison Square Garden this week, and for good reason. The New York Knicks guard buried a high-arc corner three with 45 seconds left, capping a furious 22-point comeback and forcing overtime in Game 1 of the 2026 Eastern Conference Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers. The shot rattled on the rim before dropping, igniting a 115-104 victory and sending Shamet sprinting back on defense as 19,000 fans roared. Shamet finished with nine points on 3-of-4 shooting in just 17 minutes off the bench, but his impact reached well beyond the box score. Coach Mike Brown turned to the 6-4 sharpshooter for his “big-guard” defense, tasking him with picking up Donovan Mitchell full-court; Mitchell managed only three points on 1-of-6 shooting during the fourth quarter and overtime. The performance continues a playoff surge for the 29-year-old. Over his last three postseason games Shamet is averaging 12.0 points while drilling 75 percent (9-for-12) from deep, forcing opponents to think twice about sagging off New York’s second unit. Even after a scoreless cameo in the Knicks’ Game 2 win, his net-positive defensive rating kept him in Brown’s rotation. Shamet’s timely emergence solves one of the Knicks’ biggest playoff questions: perimeter spacing when Jalen Brunson drives and Karl-Anthony Towns stretches defenses at the five. With Cleveland loading the paint, every Shamet catch-and-shoot opportunity becomes a momentum swing—and Google searches for “Landry Shamet clutch” have spiked accordingly. Key takeaways for Knicks fans and fantasy managers • Landry Shamet is now the primary floor-spacer off New York’s bench. • His defensive assignments on elite guards mean consistent late-game minutes. • The Knicks are 3-0 this postseason when Shamet hits multiple threes. If his hot streak continues, Shamet could be the X-factor that propels the Knicks to their first NBA Finals appearance since 1999. For now, the trending guard remains laser-focused: “It’s the playoffs—we need everybody 1-through-15,” he said after practice. “My job is to be ready the second my number’s called.” New York—and the search engines—are watching.