Knicks Talked To Pietrus, Childress; Brand Unlikely

10:48am: The Knicks have also spoken further to Mickael Pietrus, according to Zwerling (via Twitter). Pietrus is expected to return stateside in a couple weeks, and will work out for interested teams at that point, says Zwerling.

10:28am: As they continue to search for inexpensive bench help, the Knicks have explored the possibility of signing Josh Childress, according to Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com. Zwerling reports (via Twitter) that the two sides have had discussions, and that Childress may be open to the veteran's minimum.

With only the mini mid-level exception and the minimum-salary exception at their disposal this summer, the Knicks have run into trouble adding veterans to the roster so far. The team reportedly had interest in players like Carlos Delfino, Francisco Garcia, and Will Bynum, but those three free agents, and many others, have already reached agreements with other clubs.

The Knicks have agreed to re-sign Pablo Prigioni using a portion of their mini MLE, so there's still about $1.7MM left on that exception. However, presumably if talks became serious with Childress, New York would push for a minimum-salary deal to maintain some flexibility. Still, even if the Knicks can hang on to the rest of the MLE, the team is unlikely to sign Elton Brand, according to Zwerling (Twitter link).

Childress, 30, appeared in 14 games with the Nets last season before the team released him.