Knicks Re-Sign Henry Ellenson To Two-Year Deal

MARCH 2: The Knicks have officially signed Ellenson for the rest of the season, the team announced today in a press release. As indicated below, the deal will feature a team option for 2019/20.

FEBRUARY 28: Henry Ellenson‘s 10-day contract with the Knicks will expire tomorrow night, but the former first-round pick won’t be going anywhere. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter), New York intends to lock up Ellenson to a rest-of-season deal that includes a team option for 2019/20.

Ellenson, the 18th overall pick in the 2016 draft, spent the first two and a half seasons of his professional career with the Pistons, but was never able to crack the team’s regular rotation and become a dependable contributor. He appeared in just 59 games for Detroit before being waived after this month’s deadline to accommodate Wayne Ellington.

Ellenson inked a 10-day contract with the Knicks last Wednesday, and while he didn’t see the court much in his first two games with the club, he played 36 minutes in Tuesday’s win over Orlando, racking up 13 points, nine boards, five assists, and a pair of steals. That performance presumably contributed in large part to New York’s decision to keep him around for at least the rest of the season.

Coming off a 10-day deal of his own, John Jenkins signed a two-year contract with the Knicks last week, so Ellenson will be the second New York player to parlay a 10-day pact into a longer-term agreement.

Ellenson’s new deal figures to closely resemble Jenkins’ deal, which is worth the minimum salary and doesn’t feature any guaranteed money for next season. The 2018/19 cap charge for Ellenson’s contract will be approximately $342K, assuming it’s finalized on Saturday.

With Ellenson sticking around, the Knicks’ roster count will remain at 14 players. That gives the team an open spot to add someone else, but there’s no obligation to fill it right away — or at all.