New York Knicks: Five worst free agent signings in team history

Amar’e Stoudemire

Amar’e Stoudemire’s contract is yet another example that proves the Knicks were so desperate for relevancy that they’d throw money down the drain for any star willing to call Madison Square Garden their home floor.

Back in 2010, the Knicks considered themselves legitimate players in a loaded free agency class highlighted by LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh. The franchise pursued James with all its might, but “The King” didn’t even consider signing.

Instead, New York reunited Stoudemire with his former Phoenix Suns head coach, Mike D’Antoni. The signing wasn’t the problem. The fact that the Knicks gave Stoudemire a ridiculous five-year, $100 million contract was.

As is often the case with these kinds of contracts, it looked like a smart move early on. The six-time All-Star averaged 25.3 points and 8.2 rebounds per game across 78 contests in 2010-2011. He even led the team to its first playoff berth since 2004.

From there, however, things got progressively worse. Over the next three seasons, Stoudemire played in 47, 29, and 65 games. New York foolishly ignored the former Rookie of the Year’s knee issues that surfaced in Phoenix, and like karma, it came back to bite the franchise. His production declined in each of those campaigns before he was bought out halfway through the 2014 season after 36 cameos.

Though New York made the playoffs in three consecutive seasons with Stoudemire on the roster, in reality he only helped contribute to one of those berths. Most of that success came on the shoulders of Carmelo Anthony. In fact, in the 2012 postseason, the Florida native suffered severe self-inflicted lacerations after he punched the glass casing on a fire extinguisher.

While we sort of understand why the Knicks signed Stoudemire, giving him $20 million annually was asking to blow up in their face. It expectedly did, and the deal crippled the organization’s financial flexibility for years to come.