New York Knicks Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Mark Bryant Joining Knicks’ Coaching Staff

July 24th, 2024 at 6:33pm CST by Arthur Hill

Mark Bryant will join the Knicks as an assistant coach, according to Ian Begley of SNY (Twitter link). The longtime NBA center is considered to be one of the NBA’s best coaches for big men, Begley adds.

Bryant, 59, spent last season as a member of Monty Williams’ staff in Detroit. He has also worked for Dallas, Orlando, Seattle/Oklahoma City and Phoenix since becoming a coach in 2004.

Starting center Mitchell Robinson, who was limited to 31 games last season due to injuries, should be among the biggest beneficiaries of having Bryant on the coaching staff. The Knicks are still exploring their options at backup center after losing Isaiah Hartenstein to the Thunder in free agency.

New York already has Othella Harrington serving as a big man coach, so it’s not clear how he and Bryant will split those duties, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Lewis points out that Bryant worked in Oklahoma City with Maurice Cheeks, who joined the Knicks’ coaching staff last month, and he helped to develop newly acquired Mikal Bridges in Phoenix.

Bryant was known as one of the strongest men in the NBA, even after his playing days were over, tweets Fred Katz of The Athletic, who relays a story of Bryant’s battles in practice with former Thunder center Steven Adams.

The move is a homecoming for Bryant, who grew up in New Jersey and played at Seton Hall before beginning his NBA career. He was selected by Portland with the 21st pick in the 1988 draft and played for 10 teams in 15 seasons.

Knicks, Tom Thibodeau Agree To Three-Year Extension

July 24th, 2024 at 12:32pm CST by Luke Adams

The Knicks and head coach Tom Thibodeau have reached an agreement on a three-year extension, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

Thibodeau had one year left on his current contract, so the new deal will begin 2025 and will run through the 2027/28 season.

An extension for Thibodeau had been expected for much of the offseason after he led a banged-up roster to its second consecutive Eastern Conference semifinal this spring.

The Knicks have finished at least 10 games above .500 in three of Thibodeau’s four years at the helm, compiling a 175-143 (.550) regular season record during that time, including a 50-32 mark in 2023/24, which was the team’s best single-season record in over a decade.

As Wojnarowski observes (via Twitter), New York was one of just four teams to finish in the NBA’s top 10 in both offensive and defensive efficiency in ’23/24. The NBA’s Coach of the Year in 2011 (with the Bulls) and 2021 (with the Knicks), Thibodeau finished fifth in voting for the award this season.

Thibodeau’s extension is the latest major move in what has been an eventful offseason for the Knicks’ front office. The team kicked off the summer by making a deal with the cross-town Nets to land Mikal Bridges, then locked up top free agent OG Anunoby to a five-year contract and signed All-NBA guard Jalen Brunson to a below-market, long-term extension.

The financial terms of Thibodeau’s extension aren’t yet known. There has been speculation that his new contract will exceed $10MM per year, given the eight-figure annual salaries that coaches like Monty Williams, Erik Spoelstra, Gregg Popovich, Steve Kerr, Mike Budenholzer, and Tyronn Lue have received since last spring.

Ten 2024 Draft Picks Have Yet To Sign NBA Contracts

July 24th, 2024 at 7:44am CST by Luke Adams

Of the 58 players who were selected in last month’s draft, 48 have signed their first NBA contracts since the start of July. As our tracker shows, the breakdown is as follows:

First-round picks signed using the rookie scale exception: 30
Second-round picks signed using the second-round pick exception: 13
Second-round picks signed to two-way contracts: 5

That leaves 10 players from the 2024 draft class who have yet to sign with their respective NBA teams. Here are those players:

Utah Jazz: Kyle Filipowski, F/C, Duke
San Antonio Spurs: Juan Nunez, G, Ratiopharm Ulm
Atlanta Hawks: Nikola Djurisic, G, Mega Basket
San Antonio Spurs: Harrison Ingram, F, UNC
Indiana Pacers: Tristen Newton, G, UConn
Indiana Pacers: Enrique Freeman, F, Akron
Dallas Mavericks: Melvin Ajinca, G, Saint-Quentin
Golden State Warriors: Quinten Post, C, Boston College
Boston Celtics: Anton Watson, F, Gonzaga
New York Knicks: Kevin McCullar, G/F, Kansas

Of these 10 players, one has already signed a non-NBA contract — French team ASVEL Basket announced earlier this week that it has added Ajinca to its roster, so it appears he’ll become a draft-and-stash prospect, spending at least one season overseas before joining the Mavericks.

That’s likely the path Nunez will follow as well. While nothing is official yet, a report earlier this month stated that the Spanish point guard is expected to sign with Barcelona on a deal that will give him an NBA out during the 2025 offseason. The Spurs haven’t been operating as if they expect Nunez to be on their roster next season, having filled their 15-man roster with players on standard contracts.

Djurisic is the other international prospect in this group and his plans for 2024/25 remain unclear. He fractured his left foot during Summer League play and the injury is expected to sideline him until at least late September, putting him behind schedule in his offseason workouts.

The Hawks don’t appear to have room on their 15-man roster for Djurisic at this point (they have 15 players on guaranteed deals, plus Bruno Fernando on a non-guaranteed contract), though they do have a two-way slot open. We’ll see if the plan is to have Djurisic take that spot or if he’ll continue playing overseas for another season.

The Jazz have space on their 15-man roster for Filipowski and I expect him to sign a three- or four-year contract sooner or later. Completing that move would cut into Utah’s cap room a little, so the club will likely handle its other offseason business to make sure it doesn’t need that room for other purposes — Filipowski can be signed using the second-round exception whether team salary is over or under the cap. The Jazz also have yet to formally finalize reported deals with Drew Eubanks and Johnny Juzang, which is another sign they’re keeping all options open with their cap room.

The other six unsigned second-rounders – Ingram, Newton, Freeman, Post, Watson, and McCullar – all look to me like obvious candidates for two-way contracts. As we detailed on Tuesday, the Spurs, Pacers, and Knicks each have multiple open two-way slots, while the Celtics have one open spot, so there’s nothing standing in the way of their draftees filling those openings.

It’s worth noting that Indiana has two-way qualifying offers on the table for two players (Quenton Jackson and Oscar Tshiebwe), so there won’t be room for those two guys and Newton and Freeman on two-way deals. With 14 players on standard contracts, the Pacers could give one of those four players a 15-man spot if they want to retain all of them.

The Warriors, meanwhile, don’t currently have an open two-way slot for Post. One of their two-way players – Pat Spencer – is a carry-over from last season, so his grip on a two-way spot might be weaker than more recent signees like Reece Beekman and Daeqwon Plowden, but Spencer had a strong Summer League showing, so I’m not necessarily assuming Post will take his spot.

For what it’s worth, Post was born and raised in the Netherlands before playing college basketball in the U.S., so spending a season in Europe wouldn’t be a total curveball for him. Still, at age 24, he’s probably NBA-ready. A standard contract isn’t an option for Post for now, since the Warriors are right up against their first-apron hard cap and can’t afford to sign a 15th man. That could change if they make a trade, but for now, his best hope of opening the season with Golden State would be for the team to waive one of its two-way players.

While it’s rare for U.S.-born players to be stashed overseas, it’s not unheard of, so that’s also a possibility for some of the other unsigned players from the back half of the second round.

Another potential option would be signing a G League contract that allows the player’s NBA team to retain his rights while not dedicating an 18-man regular season roster spot to him. There’s often at least one player per draft class who takes that route. Mojave King did it in 2023, Gui Santos did it in 2022, and two Nets draftees (RaiQuan Gray and Marcus Zegarowski) did it in 2021. McCullar, a late pick who is still recovering from a knee injury he sustained at Kansas, might be a candidate for this path.

International Notes: Jokubaitis, Hall, Harper

July 23rd, 2024 at 6:59pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Rokas Jokubaitis has a clear path to sign with Maccabi Tel Aviv now that his former team, Barcelona, has announced that it has officially parted ways with him.

Jokubaitis played for the Knicks during the Summer League and is reportedly in “advanced talks” with the Israeli team. According to Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews.com (Twitter link), Maccabi is very likely Jokubaitis’ destination.

The Lithuanian point guard spent the past three years with Barcelona, where he averaged 5.3 points and 2.8 assists per game last season.

Jokubaitis appeared in five games for New York in Las Vegas, averaging 9.8 points, 1.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.2 steals in 19.1 minutes per contest.

We have more international news:

Former NBA forward Donta Hall has signed a two-year deal with Spain’s Baskonia, according to a press release from the club. The American big man most recently played for Monaco. He averaged 4.9 points and 3.5 rebounds in 13.4 minutes over 38 games in EuroLeague action last season. Hall has made 22 NBA regular season appearances with Detroit, Brooklyn and Orlando.
Former NBA point guard Jared Harper has signed a two-year contract with Hapoel Jerusalem, according to a team press release. Harper, who went undrafted in 2019 and made a total of 16 appearances for the Suns, Knicks and Pelicans, has played for Valencia in the EuroLeague for the past two years. In 53 EuroLeague appearances, he averaged 9.3 points and 3.0 assists in 17 minutes per game.
In case you missed it, Mavericks second-round pick Melvin Ajinca will play for France’s ASVEL Basket next season.

New York Notes: Johnson, Barrett, Kolek, Payne, Achiuwa

July 23rd, 2024 at 5:34pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Now that Mikal Bridges has been dealt, which Nets player currently has the most trade value? Cameron Johnson could fit that description, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post. Johnson is entering the second year of a four-year, $94.5MM contract. Johnson averaged 13.4 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game last season, despite battling numerous injuries. He’s a career 39.2% 3-point shooter and has good size for a wing.

The Kings, Magic and Lakers are among the teams who may have interest in the Nets sharpshooter, Lewis adds.

We have more from the New York teams:

The Nets have hired Andre Barrett as a scout, HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto tweets. Barrett worked four years for the league after a playing career in the NBA and a few foreign stops. He had been the scouting director for the now-defunct G League Ignite.
Second-round pick Tyler Kolek is eager to learn from Knicks starting point guard Jalen Brunson, the rookie out of Marquette told The Athletic’s Fred Katz. “It’s just playing under control, picking angles, getting to the line,” Kolek said. “That’s a really big thing. (Brunson) does a great job at getting to the line. I really gotta learn that. In the NBA, it’s so different. … You can over-exaggerate things, just little tricks of the trade you can pick up from older guys.” Kolek averaged 9.6 points and 7.0 assists in 27.2 minutes per contest for the Knicks’ Summer League team.
Despite the free agent addition of Cameron Payne, Kolek is currently viewed as the backup point guard ahead of Payne, according to Ian Begley of SNY TV. However, unless coach Tom Thibodeau goes with a 10-man rotation, Kolek may not get regular minutes. Miles McBride still projects to be in the rotation with Donte DiVincenzo and Josh Hart also coming off the bench.
The main backup big for the Knicks is still a question mark but they remain in regular contact with one of their free agents, Precious Achiuwa, Begley writes. However, Achiuwa has drawn interest from several other teams.

Rokas Jokubaitis In “Advanced Talks” With Maccabi Tel Aviv

July 22nd, 2024 at 9:00am CST by Arthur Hill

Rokas Jokubaitis, who played for the Knicks during Summer League, is in “advanced talks” with Maccabi Tel Aviv, according to Alessandro Maggi of Sportando.

The Lithuanian point guard has spent the past three years with Barcelona, where he averaged 5.3 points and 2.8 assists per game last season. Barcelona recently declined to exercise an option on his contract, making him a free agent.

Jokubaitis appeared in five games for New York in Las Vegas, averaging 9.8 points, 1.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.2 steals in 19.1 minutes per night. He shot 57.1% from the field, 50% from three-point range and 71.4% from the foul line as the Knicks posted a 3-2 Summer League record.

The 23-year-old was selected by Oklahoma City with the 34th pick in 2021 and was traded to New York on draft night. The Knicks will retain his NBA draft rights no matter where he plays this season.

Jokubaitis is also a member of the Lithuanian national team, which lost to Puerto Rico in the finals of a pre-Olympic qualifier earlier this month.

If he signs with Maccabi Tel Aviv, Jokubaitis will join former NBA guard Jordan Loyd, who played 12 games for Toronto during the 2018/19 season. According to Maggi, the team is also hoping to sign Daryl Macon, who had brief NBA stops with Dallas and Miami.

Stein’s Latest: Kuminga, Podziemski, Markkanen, Jones, Thibodeau, Dinwiddie, Morris

July 21st, 2024 at 5:52pm CST by Dana Gauruder

There’s a growing belief in league circles that the Warriors are more willing to trade Jonathan Kuminga than Brandin Podziemski in a blockbuster deal for Lauri Markkanen or another impact player, Marc Stein reports in his latest Substack notebook.

Rumors of Golden State’s interest in Markkanen have been floated for weeks. According to Stein’s sources, the Jazz have enough interest in a package of Podziemski and future draft compensation that they could move Markkanen before Aug. 6, when Markkanen becomes eligible to renegotiate and extend his contract. He has an expiring $18MM deal.

The Warriors are reluctant to part with Podziemski not only because of how highly they value his on-court contributions but also for financial reasons. He has three years left on his rookie contract while Kuminga is eligible for a rookie scale extension this offseason. Any raise for Podziemski wouldn’t come onto the books until the contracts of Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins expire in the summer of 2027.

Cade Cunningham, Evan Mobley, Scottie Barnes and Franz Wagner — members of the same rookie class as Kuminga — have all signed max extensions. It’s unlikely Golden State will make that type of offer to him, but he’s due for a large raise.

It remains to be seen if adding Kuminga to a trade package would move the needle for Utah’s front office. Thus far, Golden State’s offers for Markkanen have centered around a combination of Moses Moody and other contracts, plus draft compensation, without including Podziemski or Kuminga, Stein adds.

The Warriors wouldn’t be able to immediately extend Markkanen since renegotiation-and-extension scenarios are only available to teams with cap space. But their continued interest in him suggests they’re confident they can lock him up long-term next offseason if they acquire him.

Here’s more from Stein:

Carlik Jones‘ triple-double for South Sudan against Team USA could lead to renewed interest from NBA teams. Jones recently signed a two-year deal with Serbia’s Partizan Belgrade but the contract includes an NBA escape clause, valid through Thursday. Jones was the NBA G League MVP for the 2022/23 season, when he had a two-way deal with the Bulls. Last season, Jones played in China for the Zhejiang Golden Bulls.
Expect a contract extension for Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau in the near future. Thibodeau would be entering the final season of his original five-year contract without an extension but he’s expected to sign a new deal with a value of at least $10MM annually.
The Mavericks have a roster opening and they’re interested in re-signing Spencer Dinwiddie. Two other guards, Dennis Smith Jr. and Talen Horton-Tucker, are also under consideration but Dinwiddie is believed to be the team’s top choice. They’re also interested in retaining forward Markieff Morris, who is considered a lock to return, says Stein.

Nets Notes: Bridges Trade, Wilson, Whitehead, Z. Williams

July 20th, 2024 at 8:44pm CST by Arthur Hill

Nets general manager Sean Marks said the trade that sent Mikal Bridges to the Knicks came together quickly, but an unidentified source tells Brian Lewis of The New York Post that the framework was actually set at the trade deadline. Although Bojan Bogdanovic and Shake Milton may not have been mentioned in the original discussions, it appears the idea of five first-round picks and a swap was discussed in February.

“We were always prepared for a rebuild. It wasn’t like, oh, let’s wait to be lucky to find the star that’s coming into free agency. We were always prepared to pivot in the other direction if we could see the right opportunity to do that,” the source said. “And who would’ve thought we could trade Mikal Bridges for five first-round draft picks? And who would’ve thought we were able to find that window of opportunity to get Houston to agree to get our picks back?

“It was eye-opening to see the Knicks offer these kinds of assets for Mikal. If you look at our ability to reload our assets, particularly in the draft year of 2025, we have one pick that’s our own that could be very. very good. … We’ve got three more first-round picks that probably will be in the 20s but it’s a very deep draft. Plus, we have our own second-round pick. That’s a class we can get very excited about.”

Lewis adds that the Nets began to strongly consider a Bridges trade after he openly criticized the team’s direction following a lopsided loss to Boston on February 14. Up to that point, the focus had been on finding an All-Star to pair with him.

There’s more on the Nets:

Jalen Wilson is a leading contender for Summer League MVP honors, Lewis states in a subscriber-only story. Through four games, Wilson is averaging 24.3 PPG with 46.3/55.6/88.2 shooting figures. His three-point shooting is especially significant because he only connected at 31.6% from beyond the arc in college, 27.5% last season in the G League and 32.4% in 43 NBA games. Concerns about Wilson’s shooting caused him to fall to the 51st pick in the 2023 draft, but he becomes much more valuable if he can maintain anything close to his Summer League pace. “Shooting helps everything at any level of basketball because it provides space on the floor for his teammates,” said Nets Summer League coach Steve Hetzel.
It’s been a difficult Summer League for Dariq Whitehead, who’s trying to return to the court after three surgeries severely limited his playing time in college and during his rookie season, Lewis adds. Whitehead shot 4-of-34 from the field and 2-of-21 from three-point range in his first three games before being held out of Thursday’s contest against Orlando for “rest.” “I’d just like for him to step on the court and play as hard as he can and don’t worry about the makes or misses,” Hetzel said. “That’s been our message from Day 1. … He’s had a tough journey being out as long as he has, and I don’t think any of us can know what he’s going through. It’s our job to just keep encouraging him, put him back out there and have him play as hard as he can the next year.”
Lewis suggests more trades could be in the works after Friday’s deal to acquire Ziaire Williams from Memphis. The Nets are determined to stay under the luxury tax, and their cushion dropped from $8.2MM to $4.3MM by adding Williams. League sources told Lewis “there are still moving pieces,” possibly involving Dorian Finney-Smith and Cameron Johnson.

New York Notes: Knicks, Capela, Hart, Nets, Gilyard, Wilson

July 19th, 2024 at 5:13pm CST by Luke Adams

Responding to a reader’s question in a video mailbag, Ian Begley of SNY.tv identified Hawks big man Clint Capela as one of the centers the Knicks have checked in on this offseason as they scour the trade market.

“I don’t know how far talks went,” Begley said (Twitter video clip). “I don’t know if they’re active at this very moment. But they did check in on Capela.”

According to Begley, it’s unclear whether the Knicks envisioned Capela replacing Mitchell Robinson on the roster as their starting center or if they viewed the duo as a potential platoon at the five. Either scenario is a long shot, given that Capela will earn $22.3MM in 2024/25. Sending out enough salary to exceed Capela’s cap figure (avoiding a first-apron hard cap) would be tricky, unless the Knicks were to move either Julius Randle ($28.9MM) or multiple rotation players in a deal.

Although the Knicks have kicked the tires on higher-salary center options like Capela, Begley says the most likely scenario is that they add a lower-cost backup for Robinson and enter training camp with a roster that looks very similar to the current group.

Here’s more on the NBA’s two New York teams:

The influx of money that the NBA’s new media rights deals will bring into the league has Knicks forward Josh Hart rethinking how long he wants to play, he said during an appearance on the Front Office Sports Today podcast. “I wanted to retire at like 34, maybe 35, so I’d still got a bit of juice left,” Hart said (story via Dennis Young of Front Office Sports). “But then I saw (reports of the new $76 billion media deal), and I was like, you know what? I’m gonna play until my knees fall off.”
Jacob Gilyard is no longer with the Nets‘ Summer League team, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post (Twitter link). While there are no details yet on Gilyard’s absence, Lewis speculates that the free agent guard’s strong play in Las Vegas – including a .375 3PT% and 3.3 steals per game – may have earned him a contract offer from another NBA club.
Nets swingman Jalen Wilson, who had already been excelling in Vegas, had 33 points and 10 rebounds in Thursday’s victory over Orlando and looks like a legitimate candidate for this year’s Summer League MVP award, writes Collin Helwig of NetsDaily. Wilson has averaged 24.3 points per game on .463/.556/.882 shooting in four outings. The 23-year-old, who has a $1.89MM minimum-salary contract for 2024/25 that is currently just partially guaranteed for $75K, looks like a safe bet to make Brooklyn’s regular season roster, which would increase that partial guarantee to $325K.

New York Notes: Thomas, K. Johnson, Kolek, Thibodeau, Knicks

July 18th, 2024 at 1:04pm CST by Rory Maher

In an interview with Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, Nets guard Cam Thomas said he’s been impressed with new head coach Jordi Fernandez so far. Fernandez is currently with the Canadian national team as it prepares for the Olympics in Paris later this month.

“It’s been good,” Thomas said of adjusting to Fernandez. “He’s very smart. He’s very detailed. I think he’ll be good for our young team. I think we’re going the young route, so that’ll be good for us because he’s all about the details and pushes us to be great. I can’t wait to actually get to work with him.”

Thomas also discussed a number of other topics, including his contract situation. The 22-year-old, who led the team in scoring in 2023/24, is eligible for a rookie scale extension until the day before the 2024/25 regular season begins. He would be eligible for restricted free agency in 2025 if a deal isn’t reached.

“You definitely think about it, but it’s not something I’m pushing for,” Thomas told Scotto. “Whatever happens with the organization happens. I can’t control that. The only thing I can control is going out there and playing the best basketball I can play. Whatever happens will happen. I’m not really pressed on it. … I want to keep improving my game to get ready for next season.”

On a related note, Thomas recently switched agents and is now represented by Alex Saratsis, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Saratsis’ agency, Octagon, announced the addition of Thomas to its client list earlier this month.

Here’s more from the NBA’s two New York-based teams:

Lewis’ story is primarily focused on former first-round pick Keon Johnson, who finished last season on a two-way deal with the Nets. An unrestricted free agent who is still just 22 years old, Johnson has impressed with his defense, improved shot and decision-making in Summer League action, per Lewis. The Nets have one standard roster spot and a pair of two-way openings available, and Johnson thinks his play can translate to real NBA minutes. “I mean, I feel like everything that I’m doing out there is completely translated to what I would be doing on the main court, as far as playing defense, spacing the court and making open shots,” Johnson said. “And then whenever I do have the ball in my hands, just making simple reads. I feel like every day in Summer League I’ve kind of been showing that, and hopefully after Summer League, I’ll be able to do the same thing.”
Knicks rookie guard Tyler Kolek isn’t lacking for confidence, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (subscription required). The former Marquette star, who was a second-round pick last month (34th overall), has impressed during Summer League action. “I wouldn’t say I’m surprised [how well I’m playing],” Kolek said. “All the work that I’ve put in has gotten me to this point. I’ve been in a lot of games in college. I’m not some first-year rookie that’s just come in playing 10, 12, 15 games in college, maybe only averaged 20 minutes a game. I’ve played a lot of games and I’m really comfortable on the basketball court.”
In the same story, Bondy says there’s still an expectation that Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau will sign a contract extension. Bondy is surprised a deal has yet to be reached, though he acknowledges New York has had a very busy offseason so far.
Fred Katz of The Athletic takes a look at the Knicks‘ roster following the signing of Cameron Payne, writing that the team now has one of the deepest pool of guards in the league. According to Katz, the Knicks view Miles McBride as more of a two than a one, which is why they added Kolek and Payne. Like Bondy, Katz has also heard from sources that Thibodeau is “more likely to extend than not.” Katz also examines Precious Achiuwa‘s free agency, suggesting that a reunion is still possible, but it may behoove both sides to wait and see if any sign-and-trade opportunities arise.