Veteran journeyman Louis Amundson was determined to re-sign with the Knicks if they extended an offer, writes Roderick Boone of Newsday. Amundson agreed to a one-year, $1.65MM deal early in free agency, giving him the type of stability he has rarely enjoyed in a decade-long NBA career that has seen him pass through 10 franchises. “We obviously prioritized having Lou back,” said coach Derek Fisher, “and we feel like from the time he joined our team during the season last year to finish the season, he was just very impactful and he picked up on a lot of things that we are trying to do. He’s a worker and so we felt good about investing in him because of what he invested in us when he showed up last year.”
There’s more news from the Atlantic Division:
- The Knicks would like rookie Kristaps Porzingis to add 10 to 15 pounds by the start of training camp in October, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post. New York expects Porzingis to play primarily power forward with some time at center, hence the need for the extra bulk. “I got confirmation he’s not afraid,’’ Fisher said after watching the rookie in summer league. “He isn’t afraid to be in New York. He’s not afraid of competition.”
- The Raptors are excited to add Bismack Biyombo, who officially signed Friday, according to The Associated Press. An unrestricted free agent and former Hornet, Biyombo received a two-year, $6MM deal from Toronto. GM Masai Ujiri said the center is an “exceptional rim protector and his physicality will be a great asset to us defensively.”
- Jordan McRae, whose draft rights belong to the Sixers, is getting interest from Elan Chalon of the French League, according to Orazio Cauchi of Sportando. A Tennessee alum, McRae was the 58th pick of the 2014 draft. He spent last season in Australia and played for the Sixers’ summer league team in Salt Lake City.
4 years 60 million for Bismack Biyombo? That has to be a typo? That’s a lot for an offensively limited defensive centre.
Yeah, we fixed that not long after it went up. That would have been quite an outlay!
Demarre Carroll got 4 years 60, not Biyombo. If that was Biyombo’s contract, The coaching staff, training staff, front office and management team should all be fired and removed from the country.
Luckily for the Canadian authorities, Biyombo didn’t get nearly that much. We’ve fixed that: two years, $6MM for him.
10-15? Try 40-50 lol…Still though, Porzingis has been a lot better defensively than I expected him to be. Obviously, its summer league, but he has looked good on rotations, and he has covered ground. We already knew he could block a few shots. Even though he got moved around pretty easily by opposing bigs on both ends of the floor, those are great signs. He seems like he has a good basketball IQ. If he can continue with that, Knicks fans will be very happy to have him. Offensively, you obviously could see his talent. Should be interesting to see what they look to do with him in terms of spot in the rotation this season