New York Knicks Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Deveney’s Latest: A. Davis, Schröder, Bulls, Knicks

May 10th, 2022 at 11:24am CST by Luke Adams

ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith said last week that “numerous” league executives suggested to him that Lakers star Anthony Davis doesn’t have significant trade value due to his injury history. However, execs who spoke to Sean Deveney of Heavy.com scoffed at that idea.

One general manager told Deveney that there would be “29 teams ready with offers” if the Lakers made Davis available. An Eastern Conference executive said the idea of Davis not having much value is “crazy.”

“Look, it is beauty in the eye of the beholder. But he is an elite talent and he is 29 years old,” the East exec told Deveney. “Everybody wants him, everybody thinks that if they get their hands on him, they can keep him healthy, etc., etc.

“Now, can you get the kind of offer the Lakers gave up when they traded for him (in 2019)? No, of course not. But a team like Chicago, where he is from, they would bend over backwards to get him. Dallas, putting him with Luka (Doncic)? Of course, they would. Phoenix, Miami, any team that really wants to take that next step. The injury is a risk, but the payoff you get if you can keep him on the floor is worth it.”

While there seems to be no real consensus on Davis’ value, it may be a moot point this offseason, since there’s no indication the Lakers would consider moving him.

Here’s more from Deveney:

It’s possible the Rockets will re-sign free agent point guard Dennis Schröder and then look to trade him during the 2022/23 season, like Boston did this past year, a source tells Deveney. Although Deveney suggests Houston could use part of its mid-level exception to retain Schröder, the Non-Bird exception would allow an offer up to about $7MM, which could be enough. It’s also worth pointing out that signing a one-year deal with the Rockets would give Schröder the ability to veto a trade next season.
The Bulls are one team to watch as a potential free agent suitor for Schröder, but probably only if they trade Coby White, according to Deveney, who notes that Schröder had his best year playing for Billy Donovan in Oklahoma City in 2019/20.
Executives around the NBA believe the Knicks – who added Evan Fournier and Kemba Walker last summer – are more likely to pursue “young-ish” players with some upside this offseason rather than going after veterans again. Deveney mentions Tyus Jones, Mohamed Bamba, Chris Boucher, and Schröder as possible targets, though he acknowledges that some of those players aren’t particularly young.

Brunson's Big Postseason Doesn't Bode Well For Knicks

May 9th, 2022 at 10:51pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Jalen Brunson‘s strong postseason is bad news for the Knicks, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes. Brunson will be headed to unrestricted free agency and it’s unlikely the Knicks can open up cap space to entice Brunson to jump ship. One league source told Berman it would be shocking if Mavericks owner Mark Cuban didn’t re-sign the fourth-year point guard.

Atlantic Notes: Jones, Embiid, Sixers-Heat

May 8th, 2022 at 4:23pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Grizzlies reserve guard Tyus Jones might be a consolation prize for the Knicks if New York strikes out on Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson in free agency this summer, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post.

Jones has a history with Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau, as he was the backup point guard during Thibodeau’s three seasons with the Timberwolves. Berman notes that league sources project Jones to net a deal in the range of the full non-taxpayer midlevel exception, worth $10.2MM this season.

“I love him,’’ one NBA coach said to Berman. “He has to be one of the best backup point guards in the league, if not the best.’’

The 25-year-old out of Duke set a league record for the best assist-to-turnover ratio ever this year of 7.4-to-1 across 73 regular season games. During 21.2 MPG this season, Jones averaged 8.7 PPG on .451/.390/.818 shooting splits, plus 4.4 APG. Though he is not a consistent interior scorer, Jones has proven himself to be a good shooter and effective ball handler.

Jones and the Grizzlies are currently locked into a hotly contested second-round matchup with the Warriors. Golden State leads 2-1.

There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

Sixers center Joel Embiid may be able to will his club to a series victory against Miami thanks in large part to his terrific defensive effort, writes Marcus Hayes of the Philadelphia Inquirer. The Heat made just 35.1% of their field goals in a blowout 99-79 Game 3 Sixers victory Friday. In his first healthy game of the series, Embiid rendered center Bam Adebayo largely ineffective — Adebayo went just 2-of-9 from the floor and was a game-worst minus-22. “What I pride myself on is, really, defensively,” Embiid said. “That’s really one of the reasons why, (by) playing, I thought I could have a huge impact.” David Murphy of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes that Embiid’s return has reinvigorated the Sixers on both ends of the floor, and gives them a real shot to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Though Embiid proved the driving force behind the Sixers‘ Game 3 win against the Heat, the team is aware it still needs to focus on the road ahead in its second-round series, per Tim Bontemps of ESPN. Embiid scored 18 points on 5-of-12 shooting from the floor and pulled down 11 rebounds. “We’re down 2-1, so we got a long way to go,” Embiid said. “We can’t go down 3-1. So we really need this game on Sunday.”
In case you missed it, the Celtics are frustrated with the way referees called a late foul during an eventual 103-101 Game 3 loss to the Bucks on Saturday.

Eastern Notes: Robinson, Knicks, Hawks, Harris, Beal

May 7th, 2022 at 1:20pm CST by JD Shaw

The Knicks are among the teams monitoring what the Jazz will do this offseason, Ian Begley of SNY.tv reports. Begley suggests the team would express interest in Donovan Mitchell if he’s made available. The Jazz, in turn, could have interest in unrestricted free agent Mitchell Robinson if they choose to trade Rudy Gobert.

Robinson and the Knicks have until June 30 to reach a contract extension, but Begley says Robinson will likely enter unrestricted free agency, as two sides appeared far apart in negotiations before the trade deadline this season. Robinson, 24, is about two years younger than Mitchell, whereas Gobert turns 30 next month.

Here are some other notes from around the Eastern Conference:

The Hawks should be seeking a player this offseason that resembles Mavericks forward Dorian Finney-Smith, a source told The Athletic’s David Aldridge. Atlanta was one of the worst defensive teams in the league this season. Acquiring a defensive-minded forward would help when playing Eastern Conference contenders such as Milwaukee, Miami, Boston and Philadelphia.
Magic guard Gary Harris found his rhythm as the season came to a close, something that could help him in free agency, Khobi Price of the Orlando Sentinel writes. Harris is set to become an unrestricted free agent. He averaged 11.1 points per game with Orlando this season, shooting 43% from the floor and 38% from deep. The 27-year-old has played eight NBA seasons.
Josh Robbins of The Athletic examines several Wizards-related notes in his latest mailbag, including whether the team should re-sign Bradley Beal and whether having Kristaps Porzingis makes Beal more expendable. Washington will be eligible to sign Beal to a five-year, $248MM deal. The 28-year-old’s scoring production regressed this season, as he averaged 23.2 points per game on 45% shooting, down from a career-high 31.3 points per contest on 48.5% shooting in 2020/21.

Examining The Free Agency Options At Point Guard; A Surgeon Expects Derrick Rose To Fully Recover

May 6th, 2022 at 1:57pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Knicks won’t have many attractive free agency options at point guard other than top choice Jalen Brunson, per Fred Katz of The Athletic. Katz warns that Brunson could get expensive, as other teams are expected to have interest in him as well. He adds that the team could easily clear about $20MM in cap space to make a bid for Brunson by waiving Taj Gibson, whose salary for next season is non-guaranteed, using second-round picks as sweeteners to get teams to trade for Alec Burks or Nerlens Noel, and waiving and stretching the final year of Kemba Walker‘s deal. Katz also reviews some alternatives if New York can’t land Brunson.
Marc Berman of The New York Post talks to an orthopedic surgeon for insight into why Knicks guard Derrick Rose never returned from his two ankle surgeries. Dr. Anish Kadakia of Northwestern University said Rose and the team were being careful not to aggravate the ankle after the second procedure, which was necessary after an infection was discovered. Kadakia doesn’t believe there are any degenerative issues with the ankle, and he expects Rose to return next season. Rose still has two years left on his contract at a total of $30MM, but the final season is a team option.

Greenberg: Knicks Should Target Jeremy Sochan

May 4th, 2022 at 12:46pm CST by Luke Adams

ESPN draft analyst Seth Greenberg identifies Baylor forward Jeremy Sochan as a player the Knicks should seriously consider if they’re picking at No. 11 or 12 in this year’s draft, per Marc Berman of The New York Post. Greenberg also singled out Arizona’s Bennedict Mathurin and Wisconsin’s Johnny Davis as other logical targets for New York.

Damian Lillard No Longer Intrigued With Knicks' Plan

April 30th, 2022 at 3:47pm CST by JD Shaw

Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard, long considered a potential Knicks trade target, is no longer intrigued by New York’s plan, Marc Berman of the New York Post reports. The Knicks finished with the 11th-best record in the East at 37-45 this season after finishing fourth in the East at 41-31 last season. Instead of targeting Lillard, New York could shift its focus to Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell, whose team was recently eliminated in the first round.

Jazz Rumors: Snyder, Mitchell, Gobert, Offseason

April 29th, 2022 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Although the Jazz were eliminated in the first round for the third time in four years, the team’s ownership and management groups don’t consider head coach Quin Snyder part of the problem in Utah, sources tell Sam Amick of The Athletic. The comments made by general manager Justin Zanik during a media session on Friday certainly back that up.

“Quin Snyder is one of the best coaches in the NBA,” Zanik said, according to Erik Walden and Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune. “There is no other partner I would rather have as a coach and as a leader of our players and as a partner in our front office than Quin Snyder.”

According to Amick, Snyder has one guaranteed year left on his contract with the Jazz, then has an option year (the option decision is Snyder’s, not the team’s) for 2023/24. However, sources tell The Athletic that the head coach has been unsure for much of the year what his future holds and plans to assess his options now that the season is over. Staying with the Jazz, going to a new team, or even taking a year off are all options, Amick writes.

Veteran NBA reporter Marc Stein, who first reported on the Snyder situation in March, says today that the Lakers‘ interest in the veteran coach is serious, but adds that there’s skepticism in coaching circles that Snyder would leave Utah for Los Angeles, given the drama that surrounded Frank Vogel during his tenure with the team.

Stein, who reiterates that the Jazz unsuccessfully tried to extend Snyder prior to the 2021/22 season, agrees with Amick that the idea of the 55-year-old taking a year off isn’t out of the question. Snyder is “known to be held in high regard” by the Spurs, according to Stein, who suggests that a one-year hiatus from coaching could put him in position to become Gregg Popovich‘s successor.

Here’s more on the Jazz:

In addition to relaying Zanik’s comments about Snyder, Walden and Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune passed along several more of the most interesting quotes from the general manager’s Friday press conference. Notably, Zanik dismissed the idea that the interpersonal dynamics of Utah’s players – including Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert – are a concern. “They’ve given themselves to each other. And all the outside narratives is just a bunch of noise,” Zanik said. “Internally, I see it every day. These guys care about each other.” The GM also referred to Mitchell and Gobert as “foundational pieces.”
In a fascinating story for ESPN.com, Tim MacMahon takes a look at some of the steps the Jazz have taken to make sure Mitchell is comfortable in Utah and explains why multiple teams have been monitoring the situation closely in anticipation of the All-Star guard possibly asking to be traded. Within a story about the Knicks‘ ongoing interest in Mitchell, Marc Berman of The New York Post says league sources have speculated about the Heat being a potential landing spot for the 25-year-old.
As MacMahon outlines, Mitchell became the fourth player of 18 (at the time) who signed rookie scale extensions since the 2011 lockout to get a player option in his contract, and the first three (Paul George, Kyrie Irving, and Anthony Davis) all pushed for trades before those deals expired. Some rival executives have also speculated that market size is important to Mitchell, says MacMahon, whose story is worth reading in full.
According to John Hollinger of The Athletic, if Danny Ainge and the Jazz want to seriously shake up their roster this summer, trading Gobert would be the most logical way to do it. Hollinger identifies some hypothetical trade partners if Utah decides to go that route, breaking down how a Gobert deal might work for the Hornets, Hawks, Raptors, Knicks, or Grizzlies.

Atlantic Notes: Embiid, Harden, J. Brown, T. Young, Knicks

April 26th, 2022 at 8:40am CST by Luke Adams

After winning the first three games of their series vs. the Raptors, the Sixers have now dropped two consecutive close-out opportunities and will head back to Toronto clinging to a 3-2 lead. Star center Joel Embiid, who tore a ligament in his right thumb in Game 3, said after Monday’s loss that he wants to make an effort going forward not to favor that injury quite so much.

“I’m in a situation where I try to protect it,” Embiid said (Twitter link via Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer). “Before I even attack or if I get the ball, it’s almost like I’m not playing freely where I’m like, ‘Well, if I do this, I might get hit or I might get hurt.'”

Embiid also told reporters on Monday night that his All-Star teammate James Harden, who attempted just 11 shots from the field and had 15 points in Game 5, needs to be more aggressive on the offensive end, as Tim Bontemps of ESPN relays.

“I’ve been saying all season since he got here, he needs to be aggressive and he needs to be himself,” Embiid said. “That’s not really my job. That’s probably on Coach (Doc Rivers) to talk to him and tell him to take more shots, especially if they’re going to guard me the way they’ve been guarding. But that’s really not my job.”

No team in NBA history has blown a 3-0 series lead. If they can get a home victory on Thursday, the Raptors would be just the fourth team (of 145) to force a Game 7 after falling behind 3-0, which would put a ton of pressure on the 76ers to close out the series on Saturday at home.

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

Celtics wing Jaylen Brown earned another one of his contract bonuses on Monday due to the team’s first-round series victory. According to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (via Twitter), advancing to the second round assured Brown of an extra $482,143 this season.
The Raptors‘ decision to give up a first-round pick for Thaddeus Young at February’s trade deadline may look short-sighted if he leaves in free agency this summer, but he has provided intangible value to the team through his veteran leadership and understanding of the game, says Eric Koreen of The Athletic. Additionally, since the Raptors acquired a second-rounder from San Antonio in the Young deal, they only ended up moving down 13 spots in the draft, from No. 20 to No. 33.
In his latest mailbag, Fred Katz of The Athletic addresses a series of offseason questions facing the Knicks, weighing in on Mitchell Robinson‘s upcoming free agency, whether Tyus Jones or Malcolm Brogdon make sense as offseason targets, and more.

Stein’s Latest: Nash, Hornets, Pacers, Wall, Turner, Mavs

April 25th, 2022 at 1:06pm CST by Luke Adams

The Nets‘ season could be over in a matter of hours, as the team faces an elimination game at home on Monday night, down 3-0 to Boston in its first-round series.

While a first-round sweep would be a disastrous outcome for a club that entered the season as a championship favorite and would certainly increase scrutiny on head coach Steve Nash, one source close to the situation tells Substack writer Marc Stein that he doesn’t expect Nash to become a fall guy for a disappointing playoff run.

As Stein and his source observe, Nash has faced an inordinate number of challenges during the 2021/22 season, including Kyrie Irving‘s vaccination decision, James Harden‘s trade request, and injuries to players like Kevin Durant and Joe Harris. Stein suggests that Nash shouldn’t avoid blame for the Nets’ struggles, but says there are many larger issues in play as well.

Here’s more from Stein:

A concern about player discipline both on and off the court was among the factors in the Hornets‘ decision to part ways with head coach James Borrego, league sources tell Stein.
The Pacers expressed some interest in Rockets guard John Wall early in the 2021/22 season, but it didn’t go anywhere and it happened before they acquired Tyrese Haliburton, according to Stein. In other words, Indiana is probably an unlikely offseason suitor for Wall.
After seriously considering trading Myles Turner during the ’21/22 season, the Pacers now hope to keep the big man long-term, sources tell Stein. Turner will be extension-eligible this offseason as he enters a contract year.
While some Jazz staffers were reportedly upset about seeing Knicks executive William Wesley and Julius Randle courtside at Game 1 of their series vs. Dallas, the Mavericks weren’t particularly bothered by it, since it “didn’t really change anything” in their view, Stein writes. The Knicks are believed to have interest in Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell and Mavs guard Jalen Brunson, and Dallas is aware of New York’s interest in Brunson. Of course, Brunson is an unrestricted free agent this summer, while Mitchell is under team control for at least three more years.
Some teams have asked the NBA to consider making qualification for the play-in tournament contingent on the Nos. 9 and 10 teams finishing within a certain distance of the No. 8 seed, says Stein. It’s unclear whether the league will tweak that rule going forward or leave the format as is.