The New York Knicks had Gersson Rosas serve as the primary negotiatior in trade talks with the Utah Jazz on Donovan Mitchell. The Jazz had Justin Zanik leading negotiations on their end, which left Leon Rose and Danny Ainge largely out of the process from a communication standpoint. Rose and Ainge never spoke directly to each other during the negotiations, sources tell Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe. 

Rosas was hired by the Knicks as a consultant in February, but took control of the Mitchell talks due to his relationship with Zanik. The Minnesota Timberwolves parted ways with Rosas last September. 

The Knicks were long considered the frontrunners to eventually acquire Mitchell, but talks broke down after they agreed to sign RJ Barrett to a contract extension. Utah pivoted to talks with the Cleveland Cavaliers and reached a Mitchell deal on Thursday. 

The Knicks were reluctant to give up both Quentin Grimes and Barrett in a trade for Mitchell.