New York Knicks Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Knicks Viewed As Legit Suitor For Durant In 2019

October 4th, 2018 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Kevin Durant‘s next opportunity to reach free agency is nearly nine months away, but speculation about his decision has already begun. And according to various reports compiled by Dan Feldman of NBC Sports, the Knicks are viewed by many insiders around the NBA as a legitimate candidate to challenge the Warriors for Durant.

“The New York Knicks have a very good shot at luring KD away from the Bay Area,” Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports said during an appearance on FS1’s Undisputed (video link). “His business partner, Rich Kleiman is based in New York, huge New York Knicks fan. Their business is located and based in New York. KD’s dad is a big New York Knicks fan. The same allure that LeBron [James] had toward the Los Angeles Lakers – just the building, the culture – is the same thing, the same way, I know, that KD feels about the Knicks.”

Having named New York as a viable landing spot for Durant, Haynes cautioned that the Warriors will still “obviously” have the edge to re-sign him. Golden State will hold Durant’s Bird rights at the end of the 2018/19 season, and because he’ll have 10+ years of NBA experience, he’ll be eligible to earn a starting salary worth 35% of the cap.

Based on current cap projections, that means the Dubs could offer a five-year deal worth up to $221.27MM, giving them a significant upper hand. Any rival suitors with the cap room necessary to sign a maximum-salary free agent could only offer a four-year contract worth a projected $164.05MM.

Still, Haynes isn’t the only national NBA reporter hearing buzz about the Knicks and Durant. As Feldman details, Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post and Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports both conveyed similar sentiments during Bontemps’ recent appearance on Mannix’s podcast.

“I’ve been really surprised at how many people are – NBA types that I talk to on a regular basis – are convinced it’s going to be New York,” Mannix said. “There are a lot of people, Tim, that believe the Knicks are a prohibitive favorite to land Durant.”

If the Warriors win their third straight championship next spring, it’s hard to imagine Durant jumping ship. Of course, if Golden State falls short of a title, leaving also may not be a great look for the two-time Finals MVP, who was criticized for leaving the Thunder after they blew a 3-1 series lead against the Warriors in 2016. Throw in Golden State’s ability to offer the most years and money, and it makes sense that the Dubs would still be considered the odds-on favorites. Still, it sounds like Durant’s 2019 free agency won’t be a mere formality like it has been the last couple summers.

Billy Garrett Signs With Knicks

October 4th, 2018 at 2:26pm CST by Arthur Hill

2:26pm: The Knicks have officially signed Garrett, the team announced today (via Twitter).

8:44am: The Knicks will sign former DePaul guard Billy Garrett to an Exhibit 10 contract, tweets Ian Begley of ESPN.

Garrett was part of New York’s summer league team this year and played for the organization’s G League affiliate in Westchester last season. He appeared in 50 G League games, posting an 11.9/2.7/2.5 line.

The Knicks have made a series of roster moves this week to secure the rights of players for Westchester, waiving Tyrius Walker, signing and waiving Phillip Carr and signing John Jenkins. They are currently at the 20-man roster limit and will have to waive somebody before adding Garrett.

The Knicks also have a reported deal with Jeff Coby, so another opening will have to be created before his signing becomes official.

Knicks Notes: Lee, Trier, Robinson, Ntilikina

October 4th, 2018 at 12:53pm CST by Arthur Hill

An injury is hampering Courtney Lee’s efforts to earn a spot in the Knicks’ rotation, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post. Lee sat out his second straight preseason game Wednesday while recovering from a neck strain he suffered while being fouled on a layup last week in training camp.

“I’m losing my conditioning — I was in top shape,’’ Lee said. “With the conditioning drill and how we are playing fast, I was in elite shape. That’s the main thing I’m missing now is my wind. All the things they are putting in with plays and sets I’m picking up. It’s about building the chemistry that I’m missing right now.’’

Lee, who calls it “a little whiplash,” is receiving treatment and hopes to return soon. However, he’s falling behind in the competition for playing time as new coach David Fizdale has declared an open competition at all positions. The Knicks explored trade offers for the 33-year-old Lee this summer, and he doesn’t seem to be in their long-range plans.

There’s more today out of New York:

Rookie Allonzo Trier put on a show with 20 points in the first half of Wednesday’s game, Berman adds in a separate story. Trier finished with 25 points in 26 minutes, causing Fizdale to say afterward that he’s “got a chance” to make the 15-man roster. Trier signed a two-way contract with the Knicks in July after being passed over in the draft. New York probably would have taken him with the 36th pick if Mitchell Robinson hadn’t been available, according to Berman.
Fizdale is defending Robinson after a clash with Markieff Morris that resulted in the Wizards’ forward being ejected, Berman writes in another piece. Morris made derogatory remarks about Robinson after the game, but Fizdale liked the way his rookie center handled the situation. “I’m always going to protect my guy,” he said. “… I like the fact he didn’t back down. But I felt like he was the one who kept his composure — the one who showed the maturity.”
The Knicks are still searching for the best role for second-year guard Frank Ntilikina, notes Steve Popper of Newsday. He has been used off the bench in three-guard lineups in each of the first two preseason games and has been assigned to guard small forwards. Trey Burke, who was picked up from the G League last year and has an expiring contract, has been getting the starting nod at point guard.

Knicks Waive John Jenkins

October 4th, 2018 at 11:46am CST by Arthur Hill

The revolving door continues at Knicks training camp as the team has waived John Jenkins, tweets ESPN’s Ian Begley. Jenkins is expected to join the organization’s G League affiliate in Westchester.

Jenkins, who has previous NBA experience with the Hawks, Mavericks and Suns, just signed with the Knicks yesterday. New York, which is making a series of moves to line up players for Westchester, waived Tyrius Walker and Phillip Carr earlier this week.

Unloading Jenkins brings the Knicks down to 19 players and makes room for the expected signing of Billy Garrett, who reached an agreement on an Exhibit 10 contract with the team earlier today. Like Jenkins, Walker and Carr, Garrett is expected to wind up in Westchester.

New York still has a reported deal with Jeff Coby to address and is working on a buyout with veteran center Joakim Noah.

Wolves Tell Teams To Improve Their Offers For Jimmy Butler

October 3rd, 2018 at 10:58pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Timberwolves continue to focus on the Heat in Jimmy Butler trade talks and have informed other interested teams over the past 24 hours that their offers aren’t good enough, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. Minnesota plans to hold onto Butler until it gets a deal it likes.

Miami has been close to working out a trade for Butler over the past several days and pushed the Wolves’ front office for a decision on its latest offer today, sources tell Wojnarowski. Butler reportedly wants to join the Heat and would be willing to re-sign with the organization when he opts out of his current deal next summer. He has also expressed interest in the Clippers, Nets and Knicks, who should all have enough money next year to offer a maximum deal to another free agent.

Minnesota has focused on Bam Adebayo, Josh Richardson and a protected first-rounder for 2019 in trade talks, Wojnarowski adds. The Wolves would also like to shed the contract of Gorgui Dieng, who is owed more than $48MM over the next three seasons. A larger deal involving more players or additional teams may be necessary to make the trade work.

The Rockets remain aggressive in their pursuit of Butler, even though they are already well into luxury tax territory. Like Miami, Houston won’t have cap room next summer and has no hope of acquiring Butler without a trade.

Butler hasn’t joined the Wolves for training camp, but coach/executive Tom Thibodeau plans to appeal for him to return when the team returns from its West Coast trip tomorrow, according to Wojnarowski. Butler still has soreness in his wrist following offseason surgery and hasn’t made a decision about when he might rejoin the team if no deal gets done. Sources told ESPN he won’t miss regular season games if he is healthy enough to play.

Butler has been working out at Minnesota’s practice facility and has remained in contact with several of his teammates.

Knicks Sign John Jenkins

October 3rd, 2018 at 2:02pm CST by Luke Adams

OCTOBER 3: The Knicks have officially signed Jenkins, the team announced today (via Twitter).

OCTOBER 2: Having opened up a roster spot by waiving Tyrius Walker earlier today, the Knicks will sign John Jenkins to re-fill their 20-man preseason roster, reports Marc Berman of The New York Post (Twitter links). According to Berman, Jenkins – who caught the Knicks’ eye during his Summer League stint with the Trail Blazers – will likely end up playing in the G League.

Jenkins, a 2012 first-round pick out of Vanderbilt, played 145 regular season NBA contests for the Hawks, Mavericks, and Suns, last appearing in an NBA game in December of 2016.

Jenkins spent the 2017/18 campaign with San Pablo Burgos in Spain, recording a team-high 12.7 PPG in 22 Spanish League games, before joining Portland for the 2018 Summer League. In seven Las Vegas Summer League games, Jenkins shot a blistering 69.6% from the field, averaging 12.0 PPG.

With Jenkins apparently poised to fill Walker’s spot on the Knicks’ roster, it remains unclear when Jeff Coby will complete his reported deal with the club. New York has 19 players under contract, leaving room for just one signing for now, though the club figures to waive other camp invitees and buy out Joakim Noah in the near future.

Knicks Sign, Waive Phillip Carr

October 3rd, 2018 at 11:52am CST by ChrisCrouse

OCTOBER 3: Having secured his G League rights for Westchester, the Knicks have now waived Carr, the team announced today (via Twitter).

OCTOBER 2: The Knicks have signed Phillip Carr, according to the team’s Twitter feed. Ian Begley of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link) that the contract is likely an Exhibit 10 deal.

Contracts with the Exhibit 10 clause are worth the league’s minimum salary and don’t come with any compensation protection. They can include a bonus in the $5K to $50K range for players should the team waive them and they sign with the team’s G League affiliate and remain there for 60 days.

Carr is likely to spend most of his 2018/19 season with the Westchester Knicks. The forward played for Morgan State over the past three seasons, scoring 13.4 points per game. He was not selected in the 2018 draft.

Having signed Carr, the Knicks once again have a full 20-man roster. That means that reported agreements with John Jenkins and Jeff Coby remain on hold for now.

Knicks Waive Tyrius Walker

October 2nd, 2018 at 9:21am CST by Luke Adams

The Knicks have released a training camp invitee from their 20-man preseason roster, announcing today (via Twitter) that they’ve waived rookie guard Tyrius Walker. New York had signed the former Morehouse standout to a camp deal last month.

Walker averaged 22.8 PPG in his final college season, buoyed by a .475/.357/.802 shooting line. Because he played for a Division II school, Walker’s competition wasn’t as strong as that of most of his fellow prospects, and he didn’t receive strong draft consideration. However, he did earn a spot on the Knicks’ Summer League squad in Las Vegas, and posted 6.3 PPG in three games (11.3 MPG).

Although the Knicks will likely open up a spot on their 15-man regular season roster soon when they buy out Joakim Noah, Walker was never considered a strong candidate to fill that spot. He is, however, a candidate to join the Westchester Knicks, New York’s G League affiliate.

Walker had been on an Exhibit 10 deal, meaning he’ll be eligible for a bonus worth up to $50K if he heads to Westchester and spends at least two months with the Knicks’ NBAGL squad.

With a newly-created opening on their roster, the Knicks may finalize the signing of Jeff Coby, who reportedly reached an agreement with the club prior to training camp.

Community Shootaround: Rookie Scale Extensions

October 1st, 2018 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

So far this offseason, two players have signed rookie scale extensions: Devin Booker got a new deal from the Suns, and the Timberwolves locked up Karl-Anthony Towns to a new long-term pact.

In each of those instances, the player received a maximum salary extension. Max deals, which require little negotiation, typically get done well before the mid-October deadline for rookie scale extensions. But with that deadline now just two weeks away, we may start seeing progress on a few other deals around the NBA.

Besides Booker and Towns, 21 players are eligible for rookie scale extensions this offseason, though some of the players on that list assuredly won’t get new deals. The Cavaliers aren’t about to give Sam Dekker a long-term contract, for example. And it’s safe to assume that the Bulls aren’t looking to lock up Cameron Payne early.

Still, there are several names on that list who are intriguing candidates for new deals. Here are 12 of them:

Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (Nets)
Stanley Johnson (Pistons)
Frank Kaminsky (Hornets)
Trey Lyles (Nuggets)
Larry Nance Jr. (Cavaliers)
Kelly Oubre (Wizards)
Bobby Portis (Bulls)
Kristaps Porzingis (Knicks)
Terry Rozier (Celtics)
Myles Turner (Pacers)
Justise Winslow (Heat)
Delon Wright (Raptors)

Not all the players on this list will sign rookie scale extensions within the next two weeks. In fact, most of them probably won’t. There are plenty of reasons for teams to wait — maybe the asking prices are too high, maybe their financial situations aren’t conducive to more long-term investments at this point, or maybe they simply want another season to take a closer look at their extension candidates.

Still, it’s safe to assume that at least a couple players on this list will receive new deals. Typically, at least four players per year sign rookie scale extensions, and the numbers in previous seasons have often been much higher than that — in 2014, 2015, and 2016, a combined 24 players signed rookie scale extensions, for an average of eight per year.

With that October 15 deadline fast approaching, we want to know what you think. Which of this year’s extension candidates will receive new deals? Which deserve them, and at what price point? Which should be put off until they reach restricted free agency next summer?

Head to the comment section below to share your two cents on this year’s rookie scale extension candidates!

Mario Hezonja Pressed To Be More Aggressive On Offense

October 1st, 2018 at 11:31am CST by Austin Kent

The Knicks have given offseason addition Mario Hezonja the green light to shoot more, an opportunity the 2015 lottery pick didn’t exactly have throughout three seasons in Orlando.