Simplifies the ideas a bit and cleans up some stuff(Also Knicks lineup breakdown at bottom since I'm a knicks fan)

To break down the value I am going to split this up into parts.

Part 1: Knicks trade Sims and 2 seconds for Richards. This makes sense for the Hornets to get draft capital for a backup center in a dissapointing season. The Knicks get a better backup doing this who can replace Precious or play alongside him,

Part 2: Hornets trade Mark Williams, Sims, and 2 seconds for Aaron nesmith and a 2028 first. Pacers fix their center issue for now and hopefully the future. They need a backup, Williams can do that and could potentially even play next to turner due to spacing. Sims as a lob threat would likely do great next to Haliburton as well, and if Turner walks next year Mark is a high upside gamble with injury history. This move is questionable from the Hornets side, but with Marks injury history getting an unprotected first is really good value, and ofc Nesmith is a valuable asset as well.

Part 3: Knicks trade a heavily protected first, 2 seconds, and Mitchell Robinson for Aaron Nesmith. Hornets continue to get draft capital and get Mitch who will play center for them once he is back healthy. Knicks get a backup 3 and d wing in Nesmith.

Hornets are really bad this year due to injury and also just general team building. They would be practically left with no center until Mitch comes back so they only really do this if they fully commit to a tank and another reset, which I personally think is a good idea at this point. They rely too heavily on injury prone guys to even be somewhat competitve and it would be beneficial to get away from that model.

What the Knicks look like now:

Starting 5: Brunson, Mikal, Og, Hart, Kat

Bench: Payne, McBride, Shamet, Nesmith, Precious, Richards

The Knicks go from 9 deep with 2 question marks in Payne and Shamet to 11 deep where they can have Payne and Shamet as emergency role players who can still make a positive imapct. I really like this especially since it allows the Knicks to keep Precious who has shown he can play alongside Kat, and who has also played alongside an interior center like iHart or could play center on his own.