Guard Duane Washington Jr. has been cut by the Knicks, the team officially announced (Twitter link).
Washington had been a two-way restricted free agent after New York tendered a qualifying offer his way earlier this summer, but after the team filled up all three of its two-way slots heading into the 2023/24 season, his days with the team became numbered.
According to Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link), Washington picked up his qualifying offer, prompting the Knicks to release him. Katz adds that the team will now make an additional decision on the fate of another of its two-way players so it can accommodate swingman Dylan Windler, who has agreed to sign a two-way contract with the team.
A 6’3″ combo guard, Washington went undrafted out of Ohio State in 2021, but ultimately latched on with the Pacers for a lengthy rookie season run in 2021/22. He began his run with Indiana on a two-way deal, but saw his contract converted to a standard agreement in the spring of 2022. Across 48 contests, including seven starts, he averaged 9.9 PPG on .405/.377/.754 shooting splits, along with 1.8 APG and 1.7 RPG. He was cut in the offseason.
Washington spent his sophomore NBA stint with the Suns and Knicks on a pair of two-way deals. He appeared in 31 games for a depth-plagued Phoenix club, but didn’t crack New York’s rotation.
Across five G League contests for New York’s NBAGL affiliate, the Westchester Knicks, Washington averaged 16.6 PPG on a .424/.368/1.000 slash line. He also logged averages of 2.8 APG and 1.6 RPG.
Don’t they still need to cut one though?
Yes, or convert one of the two ways to a standard one year deal.
I’d convert knight and have Martin, Windler and Keels on two ways