The Knicks and Cavaliers — and their two stars — can’t escape each other

To take you back three years — not so long ago that you’ve forgotten, but perhaps long enough to disappear from consciousness — the Knicks were excited about Donovan Mitchell.

They were outbid by the Cavaliers in practice, as No. 45 is now in Cleveland, but the Knicks also weren’t given a chance to match the winning bid. This process led the NBA to believe that Danny Ainge, president of the Utah Jazz, had no intention of sending Mitchell to his preferred destination in New York City.

Except for Ainge’s published memoirs, we will probably never know if that was accurate. Ainge can still hail his trade return with Lauri Markkanen, the Finnish striker who flirted with stardom. The Knicks weren’t offering a player with Markkanen’s upside.

RJ Barrett, Obi Toppin and Immanuel Quickley? Markkanen is better.