New York Knicks Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Trevor Keels Returning To Knicks On Two-Way Deal

July 19th, 2023 at 8:29pm CST by Rory Maher

Guard Trevor Keels has re-signed with the Knicks on a two-way deal, per Keith Smith of Spotrac (via Twitter). According to Fred Katz of The Athletic, it’s a one-year contract (Twitter link).

The 42nd pick of the 2022 draft after one college season at Duke, Keels spent his rookie season on a two-way contract with the Knicks, who gave him a qualifying offer last month in order to make him a restricted free agent. Based on the reported terms, it seems likely that Keels simply accepted his one-year QO in order to return to New York.

Still just 19 years old (he turns 20 in late August), Keels only appeared in three games for the Knicks in 2022/23 for a total of eight minutes. He was a starter for their G League affiliate in Westchester, however, averaging 13.9 points, 3.4 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 1.0 steal with a .425/.355/.710 shooting line in 25 regular season games (30.2 minutes per contest).

Once their two-way deal with Nathan Knight is official, the Knicks will have all three two-way slots filled, as former Overtime Elite guard Jaylen Martin occupies the third. That means Duane Washington might be the odd man out — he was given a qualifying offer last month, but the Knicks won’t have any spots available.

Trade Rumors: Harden, Clippers, Lillard, Embiid

July 19th, 2023 at 7:07pm CST by Rory Maher

While the Sixers may be holding out hope that James Harden will rescind his trade request and return to Philadelphia next season, the former league MVP remains steadfast in his desire to be dealt to the Clippers, league sources tell Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports.

According to Fischer, Harden and his camp are confident he’ll end up playing for Los Angeles in 2023/24. Sources tell Fischer that the Sixers have discussed Harden trades with teams other than the Clippers, but none of those talks were serious, as rivals are aware of Harden’s “unwavering focus” on joining L.A.

The Sixers haven’t shown any interest in a potential Clippers deal though, and the Clippers aren’t interested in parting with Terance Mann, Fischer writes. Daryl Morey‘s recent comments suggest that the two sides aren’t natural trade partners.

If Harden is still on the roster by media day in early October, the 10-time All-Star is expected to join the Sixers in training camp. That might not be ideal for Philadelphia, however, as Fischer notes that Harden successfully forced his way out of Houston and Brooklyn in recent seasons when he was unhappy without needing to hold out.

Here are more trade rumors from around the NBA:

In his analysis of Fischer’s story, Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com wonders if Morey will eventually cave on his high asking price and accept an offer from the Clippers, as having Harden cause problems — in training camp or during the season — could hurt the Sixers‘ on-court results. The fact that Harden is on an expiring contract and Philadelphia is firmly in win-now mode makes it a complicated situation, because the team can’t afford to punt on a year of Joel Embiid‘s prime, Neubeck adds. That much was clear even before Embiid’s recent comments about wanting to win a championship no matter what team he’s on.
Talks between the Trail Blazers and Heat on a Damian Lillard trade are “stagnant,” according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. While the two sides have spoken, Charania hears the conversations weren’t serious. Portland has told Miami to make its best offer, Charania writes, but the Heat don’t appear to be in any rush to do so.
As Sam Amick of The Athletic wrote a couple days ago, there’s no indication that Embiid has any desire to leave the Sixers at this point, and Philadelphia certainly doesn’t want to trade him, to the Knicks or any other team. Ian Begley of SNY.tv reports that when Embiid and Morey met after the comments went viral, both sides envisioned a “Derek Jeter-type trajectory” for Embiid, with the reigning MVP remaining the face of the organization until he retires. In short, don’t expect an Embiid trade anytime soon, says Begley.

Evan Fournier Would Still Be “Very Surprised” To Be A Knick In 2023/24

July 18th, 2023 at 12:05pm CST by Luke Adams

Evan Fournier, who said in May that he didn’t expect to be back with the Knicks in 2023/24, has remained with the team through the draft and free agency. However, in an interview with Yann Ohnona of French outlet L’Equipe (subscription required), Fournier suggested he’d still be “very surprised” to open next season with the Knicks.

Given that he’s on a sizable expiring contract, Fournier would be a useful salary-matching piece in any major trade, so the Knicks will presumably be reluctant to simply cut him if no such deal materializes before the season begins. However, the 30-year-old – who started the first seven games of last season and then appeared in just 20 the rest of the way – certainly doesn’t sound like a player who’s excited about the idea of staying in New York.

Fournier’s comments to L’Equipe, as translated and relayed by BasketNews.com and Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News, are candid and honest. The veteran swingman spoke about the experience of being benched last season, his relationship – or lack thereof – with head coach Tom Thibodeau, and what might be next for him.

Here are a few of the highlights:

On how he reacted to being pulled from the Knicks’ rotation last season:

“You want to spit on everyone. You have hatred. Derrick Rose (who was also benched) and I looked at each other and said to each other: ‘What the hell are we doing here?’ During the five-on-five practices, we were on the side like some prospects. Uncool times. And when I realized that wouldn’t change, I took things more slowly. I focused on myself and didn’t let the rest get to me anymore.”

On his rapport with Thibodeau:

“I have nothing to say because I have none. When he took me out of the (starting lineup), he just told me he was going to try something else. Then before the first game of a road trip, he announced to me that I was leaving the rotation, and ciao.”

On his current trade value:

“If you want to trade me for a good return, why didn’t you use me? I was coming off a season where I was the fourth-best 3-point shooter in the league (in total makes). Why not take advantage of it? Now they won’t get anything interesting and that’s normal because I couldn’t show anything (on the court).”

On what sort of effect staying with the Knicks would have on his career:

“If I stayed, it would be a disaster, sportingly, for my career, everything. A year without playing, I can manage. Two… that would be terrible.”

On whether he’d be interested in teaming up with fellow Frenchman Victor Wembanyama in San Antonio:

“I want a spot where I can have fun again, where I can be myself. Would their game be more suited to me? It’s not the Spurs of 2014 anymore but playing for (Gregg Popovich), learning from him, it would be a pleasure and an honor, for sure. … Being with Victor, looking at the (2024) Olympics, being able to start connecting on the court, that would be great.”

12 Two-Way Restricted Free Agents Remain Unsigned

July 18th, 2023 at 10:24am CST by Luke Adams

The action on the NBA’s free agent market has slowed since the start of July, but there are still many FAs seeking new deals, including a notable group of under-the-radar players whose situations will need to be resolved in the coming days, weeks, and months.

A total of 12 two-way restricted free agents are still available, as our up-to-date list shows. Those players are as follows:

Trent Forrest (Hawks)
Theo Maledon (Hornets)
Terry Taylor (Bulls)
Lester Quinones (Warriors)
Kendall Brown (Pacers)
Jamal Cain (Heat)
Matt Ryan (Timberwolves)
Trevor Keels (Knicks)
Duane Washington (Knicks)
Dominick Barlow (Spurs)
Jeff Dowtin (Raptors)
Ron Harper Jr. (Raptors)

That group doesn’t include a 13th player, Neemias Queta, who is also a restricted free agent after finishing last season on a two-way deal. Although he remains eligible to sign another two-way contract, Queta was ineligible for a two-way qualifying offer after having played on a two-way with the Kings for consecutive seasons — his QO is a one-year, minimum-salary contract with a small ($75K) partial guarantee.

For the rest of these players, their qualifying offer is simply another one-year, two-way deal, which limits their leverage to negotiate a more lucrative standard contract.

Some two-way RFAs have managed to earn standard deals this offseason. A.J. Green of the Bucks was one. Julian Champagnie of the Spurs was another. Ty Jerome (Warriors) and Jack White (Nuggets) received standard contract offers from the Cavaliers and Thunder, respectively, that their former teams were unwilling to match, so Golden State and Denver simply withdrew their respective qualifying offers, making Jerome and White unrestricted free agents.

Offer sheets for two-way restricted free agents essentially never happen though. And in general, unless a team has earmarked a 15-man roster spot for a two-way free agent, it’s an uphill battle for these players to earn offseason promotions.

As a result, the majority of the dozen restricted free agents listed above will likely end up accepting their qualifying offers and hoping that their play in 2023/24 forces their clubs to find 15-man roster spots for them later in the season.

Still, it’s worth keeping an eye on this group to see if any of them can do better than another two-way — and to see how long some of them might be willing to wait in the hope of earning that opportunity.

Draft-And-Stash Player Remains In Spain

July 17th, 2023 at 10:35pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Rokas Jokubaitis, a Lithuanian guard whose rights are held by the Knicks, had the option on his contract picked up by FC Barcelona, according to BasketNews.com. He played all 39 games in the EuroLeague last season and averaged 5.3 points, 2.0 rebounds, and 2.6 assists. The Knicks made Jokubaitis a draft-and-stash second-round pick in 2021.

Atlantic Notes: Embiid, G. Williams, Stevens, Raptors

July 17th, 2023 at 10:58am CST by Arthur Hill

Joel Embiid has shaken up Sixers fans with comments he made during an interview at the Uninterrupted Film Festival in Los Angeles, tweets Derek Bodner of The Daily Six. The reigning MVP talked about his desire to capture an NBA title, but he raised the possibility that it may not happen in Philadelphia (video link).

“I just want to win a championship. Whatever it takes,” Embiid said. “I don’t know where that’s gonna be, whether it’s in Philly or anywhere else, I just want to have a chance to accomplish that.”

The 29-year-old center hasn’t advanced past the second round of the playoffs in his nine years with the Sixers, including a seven-game loss to the Celtics in the Eastern Conference semifinals last season. The team’s status as a legitimate title contender may be in jeopardy in the wake of James Harden‘s trade request.

The Knicks have been repeatedly mentioned as a potential landing spot for Embiid if he ever decides to ask the Sixers for a trade. He’s under contract for three more seasons and has a $59MM player option for 2026/27.

Whether it was his intention or not, Embiid’s comments sent a clear message to the Sixers front office that they have to handle the Harden situation correctly, observes Kyle Neubeck of The Philly Voice. Management can’t afford to take a step back this season, knowing that its best player might be starting to consider other options.

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

Grant Williams tells Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe that he began to realize his future was somewhere else when he and the Celtics failed to reach an agreement on a rookie scale extension last summer. “I kind of had perspective,” said Williams, who was shipped to the Mavericks in a sign-and-trade deal. “Even after the season and before the Kristaps (Porzingis) trade, I had some understanding of what I was trying to accomplish in free agency, and where I saw myself moving forward.”
Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens landed one first-round pick, six second-rounders and a second-round swap this summer, but he’s not intending to use most of them, Himmelsbach adds in another Boston Globe story. “The coach in me would tell you I don’t have a ton of interest in picking eight second-round picks,” Stevens said. “But eventually those are trade chips. Those are potentially good second-round picks that you can use.”
Rival teams are skeptical that the Raptors really plan to part with Pascal Siakam or any of their other top players, Marc Stein states in his latest Substack column. However, Stein said that after being at Summer League, he got the “distinct impression” that Toronto will explore making another significant move or two before training camp.

Atlantic Notes: DiVincenzo, Sims, Nowell, Reed

July 16th, 2023 at 2:26pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Warriors superstar point guard Stephen Curry praised the Knicks’ free agent signing of former Golden State shooting guard Donte DiVincenzo, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News.

“He knows how to play the game,” Curry said. “You can tell he won at the highest level in college. The Knicks got a good one and I’m happy that he got his fair share of that CBA, too. So it was good.”

DiVincenzo joined the Knicks earlier this month on a four-year, $47MM contract that far exceeded what the Warriors were able to offer him. Across his 72 healthy regular season contests with Golden State last season, the 6’4″ wing averaged 9.4 PPG, 4.5 RPG and 3.5 APG.

“He’s all about basketball, he’s all about winning,” Curry said. “He’s good on both sides of the ball. He can play-make better than most people probably realize. So he fills a lot of holes on teams. And he’s not selfish in the respect of — I know he wants to start and be that guy, but he also understands where the value can be created on a team no matter what role you’re asked to do. And he bought in right away. And he got rewarded for it.”

There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

Knicks reserve center Jericho Sims will not be cut by the team prior to today’s salary guarantee deadline, tweets Fred Katz of The Athletic. The $600K partial guarantee on Sims’ contract for 2023/24 will increase to $1.2MM after today; his full minimum-salary deal will become guaranteed if he remains under contract through August 20, which should be a lock.
Raptors rookie two-way guard Markquis Nowell is striving to become the latest undersized guard to succeed in Toronto, writes Doug Smith of The Toronto Star. As Smith notes, the 5’8″ Nowell is looking to former shorter-statured Toronto guards Fred VanVleet, Kyle Lowry, Muggsy Bogues and Damon Stoudamire for inspiration on his NBA journey. “They’re (people) I studied growing up, knowing that I wasn’t going to be a bigger guard,” he said of the likes of ex-Raptors Stoudamire and Bogues. “I kind of had to study them, study how they stood in the league, how they impacted the game at this level. Anyone I can learn from, I do.”
Newly re-signed Sixers backup center Paul Reed took to The John Kincade Show on Philadelphia’s 97.5 FM The Fanatic to discuss his restricted free agency and eventual return to the club. The 6’9″ big man inked a three-year, $23MM offer sheet with the Jazz, which the Sixers opted to match. “I’m glad they [were] able to match the offer,” Reed said (hat tip to Ky Carlin of USA Today for the transcription). “The goal this offseason is to keep developing and keep finding ways to get better. I know I got an opportunity this year to play a little 4. Especially, with [new head coach] Nick Nurse. Just working on stretching the floor, driving out the corners, just little things like that.”

Does Quentin Grimes Still Have Place In Knicks' Long-Term Plans?

July 16th, 2023 at 8:14am CST by Luke Adams

Following the signing of Donte DiVincenzo, Zach Braziller of The New York Post wonders if Quentin Grimes – who started 66 games and averaged 29.9 MPG last season – will still play a significant role for the Knicks going forward or if he might become more valuable to the team as a trade chip in a deal that would help balance the roster and/or add an impact player.

Scotto’s Latest: Suns, Pacers, Knicks, Wright, Hornets, More

July 15th, 2023 at 2:32pm CST by Rory Maher

The Suns, Pacers and Knicks recently had exploratory trade talks on a deal that would have sent Cameron Payne to New York, T.J. McConnell to Phoenix, and Evan Fournier and draft picks to Indiana, league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. Other iterations of the deal included Jordan Nwora, according to Scotto, though it’s unclear where the Pacers forward would have ended up in that framework.

However, the talks on the three-team trade have stalled, Scotto reports. Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports was first to report the Suns and Pacers discussed a deal involving Payne and McConnell, and suggested the Knicks may have been involved as well.

Here’s more from Scotto’s latest article for HoopsHype:

League sources tell Scotto that the Hornets are on the hunt for a backup point guard after Dennis Smith Jr. signed with the Nets in free agency. As Scotto previously reported, Charlotte had interest in Aaron Holiday, but he wound up signing with the Rockets. According to Scotto, one player on Charlotte’s radar is Wizards guard Delon Wright, who will make $8.2MM next season in the final year of his contract. The Wizards traded for Tyus Jones and Jordan Poole, and Wright was signed by the previous front office regime. The 31-year-old has already seen his name pop up in a few other trade rumors this offseason.
Scotto recently spoke to a handful of second-round picks at Summer League about their goals entering their rookie seasons. Those players are Nuggets guard Jalen Pickett, Celtics forward Jordan Walsh, and Mouhamed Gueye and Seth Lundy of the Hawks. Walsh, the No. 38 pick of the 2023 draft, has high expectations for himself, he told Scotto. “If I get a chance to play with these guys and help the team, I want to be on the All-Defensive First or Second Team or Defensive Player of the Year,” Walsh said. “My goals are defensively oriented and winning a championship, which is No. 1. If I’m able to accomplish any of those things, I’d feel my rookie year went pretty well.”
In case you missed it, we passed along some Raptors rumors and free agent rumors from Scotto as well.

Free Agent Rumors: Oubre, Jones, Brooks, Smith, Giles

July 15th, 2023 at 1:43pm CST by Rory Maher

The Mavericks are actively looking to improve their roster and have shown “exploratory interest in several free agent forwards,” including veterans Kelly Oubre and Derrick Jones Jr., league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.

Although Dallas technically still has a good chunk of its full mid-level exception available, the team has yet to sign first-rounder Olivier-Maxence Prosper, and once that occurs the Mavs will be pretty close to the luxury tax line. They do have an open standard roster spot and could offer a free agent more money than the veteran’s minimum, but not much more unless other moves are made.

On a related note, Scotto confirms that the Mavs continue to shop Tim Hardaway Jr. and JaVale McGee in trade talks. Recent rumors have indicated Dallas tried to package Hardaway and McGee to the Pistons for Bojan Bogdanovic and Killian Hayes.

Scotto hears Detroit was looking for “essentially two first-round picks” in exchange for Bogdanovic last season, though Hayes could available with a glut of guards on the Pistons’ roster.

Here are more free agent rumors from Scotto:

Free agent guard Armoni Brooks, who has been playing well for the Nets in Summer League, could be a candidate for a two-way deal from Brooklyn, according to Scotto. However, if that doesn’t transpire, the 25-year-old has also drawn interest from “multiple EuroLeague teams,” Scotto reports. Brooks holds two years of NBA experience with the Rockets and Raptors. He played for Atlanta’s G League affiliate, the College Park Skyhawks, in 2022/23.
League sources tell Scotto that the Hornets offered Dennis Smith Jr. more than the veteran’s minimum to return to Charlotte, but the Nets reached out to the point guard right after free agency opened and he saw an opportunity for more playing time in Brooklyn. The fact that he was a priority for the Nets also appealed to the former lottery pick, says Scotto.
The Pistons, Cavaliers, Knicks and Bucks were among the teams who watched Harry Giles‘ recent workout in Las Vegas, sources tell Scotto. Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News recently reported that members of the Timberwolves attended as well, which Scotto confirms. A former first-round pick, Giles has been out of the league the past two seasons after playing with the Kings and Trail Blazers from 2018-21. Still just 25 years old, Giles recently discussed his attempt to make it back into the NBA.