Boston just gifted the Knicks and Nuggets the perfect last-minute free agent target

With the start of the regular season just days away, NBA teams are forced to cut their rosters down to 15 players and three two-way prospects. That has led to a flury of players becoming available, including guard Lonnie Walker, who was waived by the Boston Celtics.

Walker being cut was surprising but not unexpected given that the Celtics are currently close to the second apron. Unless they made a trade, they wouldn't have been able to keep him and sign him to a regular NBA contract.

The Celtics' loss could lead to a good opportunity for the New York Knicks and Denver Nuggets. The Knicks depleted their depth to make the Karl Anthony Towns trade and they only have 15 total players under contract at the moment, including their three two-way players.

They are especially thin at guard, with guard Landry Shamet, who was previously expected to make the roster, getting injured and being waived. Meanwhile, the Nuggets have a full roster, with all 15 spots filled plus their three two-way roster spots. Even so,  Denver could use Walker.

The Boston Celtics just gifted the New York Knicks and Denver Nuggets the perfect last-minute free agent target.

Walker is known as a microwave scorer who can create for himself by attacking the basket with his elite athleticism and can play off-ball, shooting 38.4% from three last season. Denver, despite being a great offensive team, didn't shoot a lot of threes last season and should look to add as much shooting as possible to maximize the spacing around stars Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray.

The potential pairing of Walker and Jokic in particular would be interesting given Walker's explosiveness and shooting ability. That would possibly make him a better fit than Russell Westbrook, even though they could play together. As for the Knicks, they probably won't need to rely on their bench too much, with their starters likely to play big minutes this season.

Nevertheless, the need for depth is important, especially after they fell apart due to injury after injury in the 2023 playoffs resulting in them falling short of the Eastern Conference Finals. Walker would be a depth piece but would still have a chance to eventually crack the rotation.

Between the Knicks and Nuggets, the Knicks would make more sense with them having several open roster spots and the potential for Walker to earn minutes. The Nuggets might still be the better fit but they would have to waive a player to sign Walker and even then he'd have to earn playing time. Either way, the Celtics gave both the Knicks and Nuggets a potential free agency target.