SEPTEMBER 22ND, 4:30pm: The signing is official, the team has announced.
SEPTEMBER 10TH, 12:12pm: The Knicks have agreed to sign undrafted Michigan State point guard Travis Trice to a one-year, partially guaranteed contract, reports Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Trice was with the Heat during summer league, but he’ll be with New York this fall, joining four others who have partially guaranteed deals with the Knicks, plus 13 players with full guarantees, as our Knicks roster page shows.
Trice was a largely unheralded draft prospect, falling outside of ESPN’s rankings, but he showed a knack for outside shooting with the Spartans, nailing 39.5% of his three-point attempts in his four years of college ball. The 6’0″ 22-year-old brought that stroke with him to the summer league, canning five of 14 total attempts. This past season was his only year as a full-time starter at Michigan State, and he averaged 15.3 points, 5.1 assists and 1.8 turnovers in 33.6 minutes per game. However, his 36.9% three-point shooting was the worst mark of his college career.
The Knicks will probably keep Langston Galloway on his partially guaranteed contract, and Thanasis Antetokounmpo, in whom New York invested the 51st overall pick in 2014, would appear to have the inside track on the 15th regular season roster spot despite his lack of a full guarantee. So, Trice faces long odds to stick around for opening night. The Knicks can claim the D-League rights to as many as four of the players they cut at the end of the preseason, so Trice appears to have a better shot of remaining with the organization that way.
Do you think Trice is capable of making a regular season contribution for an NBA team? Leave a comment to let us know.
Trice has a nice outside shot and comes from one of the best programs in America. Problem for him is that he’s slight of build by NBA standards. He’ll have to prove he can hold his own defensively to make the roster.
You have to respect that Tom Izzo pedigree. I wouldn’t count him out.
I had heard that the heat were impressed with him during summer league, so it’s a nice get for the knicks to stash in their D-league affiliate