MONDAY, 8:25am: Smith is the player expected to be released if and when the Knicks sign Tyler, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post, who says the Knicks could announce the roster moves as soon as today.
SUNDAY, 2:29pm: The benefits of nepotism can only get you so far sometimes. If the Knicks go ahead and sign Jeremy Tyler, as they’ve been discussing, they are seriously considering cutting Chris Smith to free up a roster spot rather than center Cole Aldrich, tweets Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com.
Aldrich is on a non-guaranteed deal while Smith’s pact is fully guaranteed for the rookie minimum salary. The guard has seen just two minutes of total court time and while Aldrich hasn’t gotten that much more burn, it doesn’t make sense for the team to shed a big man when frontcourt depth is their issue.
The signing of Smith, the younger brother of J.R. Smith, was a controversial move for the Knicks over the offseason. Despite Chris’ assertion that he earned his place on the roster, many speculated that the Knicks added him as a sweetener to get J.R. to re-sign over the summer.