In the aftermath of the shocking Karl-Anthony Towns trade, the New York Knicks are still working out their roster heading into the 2024-25 season. They traded Julius Randle, Dante DiVincenzo, and two other players to land Towns. That gives them an upgrade in their frontcourt, though they sacrificed both depth and players to fill out their roster.
Fortunately, it appears that their roster is starting to come together post-trade. According to New York Post reporter Stefan Bondy, the Knicks plan to keep Landry Shamet, who signed with New York on a minimum contract.
Shamet well on path to making final roster, as expected. Coach Tom Thibodeau again praised the veteran guard today and gave a clue into nine-man rotation. Story coming: https://t.co/dD2GRuHrU5
— Stefan Bondy (@SbondyNBA) October 5, 2024
With the NBA's roster minimum set at 13 players, New York will have exactly 13 players under contract now, inching closer to having a full 15-man roster for the start of the regular season. That will give them a roster consisting of Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby, Towns, Mitchell Robinson, Deuce McBride, Tyler Kolek, Pacome Dadiet, Jericho Sims, Cam Payne, Precious Achiuwa, and Shamet.
The New York Knicks' roster is finally beginning to take shape in the aftermath of the blockbuster trade.
Given that they are only $3.5 million under the second apron, they won't be able to add any veteran minimum players considering they would eat up at least $2.3 million. Instead, they could convert two players on two-way contracts to fill the remaining roster spots.
That would give them 15 players, but New York may opt to keep the two remaining roster spots unfilled. Be that as it may, they can rely on the three two-way roster slots to help eat up regular season minutes as they try to make another deep playoff run.
Coach Tom Thibodeau is known for playing his starters big minutes so keeping everyone healthy will be a challenge. He will also likely play Towns at the five, which means that they will play four perimeter players around him, including Hart. That makes the Knicks more top-heavy compared to last season's team, but they are also far more talented.
Mitchell Robinson, their starting center, is expected to miss nearly two months of the season. Additionally, Anunoby has been known to miss several weeks each season due to various injuries. Those are potential concerns, to be sure.
But, come playoff time, assuming that New York has a good seed, which they probably will, then the Knicks could very well make it to the Eastern Conference Finals and possibly the NBA Finals.