New York Knicks’ Free Agent Options
By Kaveh Jam
The New York Knicks are currently fully occupied in pre-draft planning and player evaluations. As they should be. They hold the fourth pick in a draft chock full at the top with talented players that could lift the franchise out of the swamps of irrelevance.
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Even if the Knicks land a talented foundational player, we can all look forward to the coaching staff misusing him, stunting his development by playing veterans in front of him, and letting him take his early career lumps just in time for the front office to send him off for a future second-round pick, an aging veteran, and cash considerations.
Reality hits hard for the Knicks. The truth is they need more than a lottery selection to help this sinking ship. Enter free agency, where if wise decisions are executed, the foundation of an eventual contender can be constructed.
On the heels of the failed Jose Calderon experiment, it’s no secret the current version of the Knicks is in dire need of a point guard. Aside from just about every other position, the Knicks backcourt was routinely exposed last season. Never before has the point guard position been so stacked in the league.
Help is on the way in the form of nearly $30 million in cap space to fill out a riddled roster that finished in the bottom three in offensive and defensive efficiency. There have also been whispers around the organization of moving Calderon. Shedding the remaining $15.1 million that’s left on his deal over two years should be imperative.
The good news is there are several options the Knicks could be looking at to fill their point guard spot. They could use the fourth pick to nab Emmanuel Mudiay or D’Angelo Russell, as some expect.
The Atlanta Hawks, fresh off being swept in the Eastern Conference finals, now have to deal with the unrestricted free agency of forwards Paul Millsap and DeMarre Carroll. A report in the New York Post have both as potential Knick targets this offseason.
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Millsap is a 6-foot-8 stretch power forward and twice an All-Star. He would fit nicely in a Knicks offense in dire need of reliable rebounding and inside scoring. The beauty in Millsap is his versatility, something that Knicks president Phil Jackson undoubtedly admires.
His asking price might be outside of what the Knicks are willing to offer, unless Phil believes the tandem of a Carmelo Anthony and Millsap frontcourt is just too good to overlook.
Adding a player like Carroll would certainly shore up the putrid Knicks defense. Teams can’t receive commitments from free agents until July 1 so there is still some time for the organization to solidify their wish list and formulate their approach.
Alternatively, the team could also explore sign-and-trade opportunities for someone such as the reportedly disgruntled Denver Nuggets point guard Ty Lawson. Denver is looking to remake their roster and Lawson could possibly be on his way out.
Whichever way the team opts to sew the pieces back together, count on a new-look Knicks squad at the Garden next season. The right combination of fresh faces from the draft and free agency is step one of the rebuilding phase.
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