Bc if we do want to stay under the 2nd apron, one of the benefits is you can trade your 2033 pick. And that’s historically been the right price to move into the lottery.

A couple years ago the Twolves did this, trading their 2031 pick to SA for the 8th pick and selected Dillingham. Worth noting that trade worked out terribly for them.

Don’t follow the college game at all so can’t comment on any of the players individually. No idea as to what the cost might be to trade up for Mara – who most mocks I’ve seen project to be selected ~10 picks higher than 24 – and whether the price would be worth it.

As a lifelong Giants fan, though, the idea of bringing in anyone with that name scares the bejeeezus out of me.

I don’t think you can compare the price of moving into the lottery of the 2024 draft, which was projected as an all-time terrible draft, and this year’s draft which is considered an all-time great one.

Good point, vincoug. But from what I’m reading Mara isn’t really part of the great tier. In the two mocks I just read I saw him projected to go to 11 & 12.

12 is the Thunder, and it’s been reported that they are looking to trade that pick because of their roster crunch.

The best roster case for avoiding the second apron would be leveraging that ’33 pick to get a better, cheaper backup C than Mitch. And I’m just trying to figure out who it could be.

You could also package some combo of Deuce, Kolek, Dadiet, the 24th pick, and the ’33 pick for someone on a rookie deal. Don’t really see that guy anywhere, though. Is Portland going to do that for Clingan? Memphis for Edey? I don’t think so.

One very interesting possibility: we all know the Heat are working hard to land Giannis and the the Bucks don’t love their offer (which includes Ware). We could get in on that trade, take Ware from Miami, and give the 24th pick and our ’33 pick to Milwaukee. We’d only have to cobble together 4.6M to match Ware’s salary.

The more I think about it, the more I think we should prioritize bringing back Mitch and letting Shamet and even Alvarado go if we have to dip too far into the SA to keep both of them.

Losing Shamet will hurt but I believe Deuce and Kolek can give us close to what Alvarado and Deuce gave us.

Mitch I think is much harder to replace bc of his specific skill set and strengths.

But also do draft another center in the draft with the idea that they can surpass Hil and maybe eventually Mitch in the rotation.

Also draft another sharp shooting SG or wing and PG.

Maybe we take a step back but I also think Leon could then make a trade deadline move to bolster the bench and make a run.

But I think Kolek is ready. I was almost surprised we got Alvarado bc Kolek looked pretty good to me. And deuce had a bad playoffs but also rushed back from an injury and before the injury was having a break out season. You also get a bit younger if you prioritize deuce and Kolek over Alvarado and Shamet.

I have no idea what Dolan or Leon are really thinking and I’m not competent in these apron issues (and have no desire to be). So I keep changing my mind every 5 minutes.

There are multiple sceanrios that are highly dependent on what Leon/Brown think of Kolek and Hukporti, who we draft (if anyone) and who we are determined to keep.

I love all our players, but you can potentially let Mitch go because of injury/minutes/FT issues and price if you are confident Hukporti can be the backup without any significant downside (or you find a cheaper replacement at the same output which is highly unlikely).

You can potentially let Alvarado go if you think Kolek can be the backup PG and we won’t lose anything, but we NEED a quality backup PG.

You can potentially let Deuce go if you sign Shamet and are confident you have enough PG play in case of an emergency. To me that would mean keeping Alavardo and Kolek.

I like both Shamet and Deuce a lot, but I’m not sure we need or can have both. Price may be the determining factor.

We still have the issue of how mch Diawara is going to cost.

My only desire is to come away with a team that’s as good as this year’s version which I thought was close to perfect at every position. We can’t afford to take even a small step back when so many very good teams are very likely to be even better next year.

It’s all conjecture but I was glad that Brown shelved Kolek for the finals as it felt like the hyper-fast, hyper-athletic, hyper-physical Spurs guards would have eaten him for breakfast.

If you look at Tyler’s numbers everything trended up in a positive way in year two. His TS% jumped to .533, which isn’t that far off of the average point guard (56.6). His asst/TO rate was 3, well above PG average (2.5). He even shot 38.6% from three, which is quite cromulent. It’ll be a good storyline next year (assuming he’s still with us and gets playing time) to see if he can keep improving and not be a detriment on D.

I was reading ESPN’s latest mock draft, and something that struck me about it was that beyond about pick 14 every mock pick was like 22 or 23 years old. I think this is because younger college players worth drafting can get more in NIL than typical NBA late picks typically do.

By the way, they have us picking Tarris Reed at number 24, right before the Lakers pick Zuby Ejiofor at number 25.

See https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7365062/2026/06/18/nba-2026-mock-draft-peterson-boozer-acuff/

If you think about Mitch’s normal impact when healthy vs. his actual impact in the Finals, bringing him back is kind of a net improvement over this year’s team.

(If we can successfully manage his minutes again for the playoffs, if he doesn’t have any mental health episodes between rounds, standard caveats apply.)

Yeah I think we can keep Mitch at a reasonable salary. I just find it hard to think any team is going to throw major money at him and not expect him to start or at least play heavy back up minutes. Here we can load manage him and he still gets a nice paycheck.

That would be the argument I’d make with him. He missed almost two seasons bc of injuries and mentally that has to be really hard. We will make sure we can keep him as healthy as possible.

It has been over 5 minutes. So I’ve changed my mind again. 😉

If Dolan is not willing to go over the 2nd apron I think Mitch is the player that has to go for the following reasons.

1. Most expensive of those we might lose
2. Most injury prone
3. Minutes restriction when Towns is out
4. No B2B
5. Broken hand and potential personal issues
6. Already have Hukporti and can draft another big

It would be a big loss on multiple levels, but I’d rather lose just Mitch than some combination of other players. Check back in 5 minutes for the next time I change my mind.

If Mara is available to us, we should pick him without thinking very hard about it. There are definitely questions about his mobility and ability to handle serious minutes, but he’s got real skill on both ends and with his playmaking we could run some of the same sets we run from the top of the key with KAT. He’d be great to have no matter what happens with Mitch.

It seems extremely doubtful he’ll be there at #24, or even at a slot we could conceivably trade up for, but there are always surprise slips.

I don’t know. Part of my thinking is that Kolek and deuce I think are more likely to give us what Alvarado and Shamet gave us vs. Huk or some vet minimum big or a draft pick.

Mitch would make $25-30M/yr if he were healthy. He’s one of the top-100 players in the league by any impact metric — DARKO ranks him 34th. There isn’t a good replacement option for Mitch outside of hoping to get lucky.

Strat all of those are also reasons why we might be able to keep Mitch for a reasonable deal lol

I don’t think we wouldn’t have won the champsionship without Alvarado and Shamet.

IMO Alvarado was the exact player we needed to put us over the top. Everyone knows how much I love Kolek, but I’d feel way better about letting Alvarado go if I had seen Kolek in the rotation through playoff caliber competition.

On Shamet vs Deuce, I think “healthy” Deuce may be the a bit the better player, but also think he’s going to be more expensive than Shamet and Shamet is now proven under fire. Deuce gave us very little in the finals and we are just assuming he was less than 100% even though he was playing well at times before that.

The Mitch issue for me is mostly about price and availability and not the gap between Mitch and his replacement. We may have been a bit lucky in term of injuries this year until the finals when he broke his hand and we’ll still have to deal with minutes restrictions, no B2Bs and FTs next even if we get lucky again. We’ll also lose at least 2 players.

(Especially after this Playoff Comeback Extravaganza)
For Me it’s not about the game of those players but more about the impact in the chemistry of the team and the buddiness of the squad.
I’m STILL unable to explain HOW the fuck did they found the power to come back from Hell and win all those playoff games and I’m almost convinced that it’s not Defensive or Offensive but rather Cohesive and has to do Mainly with human connection.

If Mitch or Shamet or Whoever is Needed for this Team to be 100% effective you Do keep him.
And that’s very well known to the players and the coach.
They know who gives 100%, who wants to go to get paid and who needs to stay at all costs.
They KNOW who to keep and who to let go.
If JDolan has to pay then cut the media crap Fuck You and Pay JD.
That simple.

Brown’s Knicks current roster will never be considered as the Ultimate Favourite for another title.
They’re not flashy or dominant or MVP and other trophies fronted.
They have tho Exactly what it takes to make it happen again.
And again…

we’ll still have to deal with minutes restrictions, no B2Bs and FTs next even if we get lucky again

If one of your biggest flaws is that the rest of the team fouls too much, then you’re probably a good player.

As for the injury history:

(1) we have one of the best medical staffs in the league

(2) Mitch’s minutes are limited in the playoffs because KAT is one of the best players in the league, not because he reaches his minutes ceiling. Kornet is a cromulent backup C and only played 8mpg in the finals.

(3) There are no B2Bs in the playoffs.

It has been over 5 minutes. So I’ve changed my mind again. 😉

too funny strat…Check back in 5 minutes for the next time I change my mind.

Not all of the news has been good…

‘The Los Angeles Police Department on Friday released body camera footage of an officer shooting and killing of a woman’s pet dog in an incident that has sparked an international outcry and raised questions about police use of force.

The 2-year-old golden saint berdoodle, named Jameson, was shot dead by a police officer last Saturday outside the door of an apartment where he and another officer had arrived to investigate reports of a woman screaming, the police department said earlier this week.

It was later found that the woman, Marie Marseille, was celebrating the New York Knicks winning the N.B.A. championship.

The footage, which stitches together video from the body cameras on both officers, shows them approaching an apartment door. They had received a call from a neighbor who heard her repeatedly screaming, “Oh, my god,” for 20 minutes and asked officers to do a wellness check.’

hello ,slow day ,comparatively .what a great time to be a Knick fan . I wanted to thank Cybersoze the other day for inviting lurkers and hesitant readers to participate . Thank you ,I do read this blog most days ,its my subway reading if nothing else . Been a fan since 1999 ,wrote on posting and toasting about 7 or 8 years ago facetiously declaring we would get to ECF ,some fun in dark days . Happy to say raised my son to love the knicks ,he has a photo of him and I and Clyde on his wall and happily we shouted our asses of at the first game in San Antonio .saying hello and love the knowledgable and diverse community here . COME ON DOLAN ,KEEP OUR GUYS ,PAY OUR GUYS

I don’t get the big deal on going into 2nd apron for this one year only.

1) Pay Mitch and Landry great one year salaries, Following year, extend KAT on a 5yr – $45m AAV. Now you come back under the apron in 2027-28 and all is well.

2) Package Dadier, Deuce, next week’s 1st round pick and the 31st to get as many future picks as you can.

3) offer the most we can to Diawara and recruit him on a 3yr deal. He’s a young OG 2.0.

4) go back to sleep and wait for a veteran to be bought out.

I don’t get the big deal on going into 2nd apron for this one year only.

No one does. If Dolan didn’t open his mouth we’d all assume Leon would behave rationally and go over it like Boston did, like Cleveland did, and like OKC is likely about to do.

Hear you. Dolan is Dolan. My MSG shares up like 200% is last few years. Leon will sit down and sell him into paying a few extra dollars. No worries.

Going over the apron for one year with really good players on good contracts is not the same as going with albatross contracts.

Should they decide to change direction these players have value. If Brad Stevens can dump his terrible multiyear contracts and switch course in one week, Leon can too.

Happy early fathers day to everyone.
Cheers to Rick Brunson. Best Dad in America.

interested in next week’s draft, but not really from a knicks’ fan perspective…more curious to see how other teams improve themselves…

wasn’t always happy in the past when we punted on the draft, now I kind of hope and expect it…

now that is a room I would like to sit in on:

Leon will sit down and sell him into paying a few extra dollars. No worries.

it seems leon has a very understated and low key vibe – yet, seems more than comfortable in there swimming with the sharks, and achieving most of what he wants…

leon definitely gets having good and competent backup/support…what he did for jalen, no doubt he does it for himself…

trying to remember the first time i posted about jalen leading us to a championship…probably around the time hammond said he couldn’t, and kendrick perkins started telling anyone who would listen that jalen brunson could very well lead a team to a finals’ trophy – i believed him…

not to raise expectations too high, i think this core group (front office included) can get another trophy in one of the next two seasons…

that would make four, and we’d be creeping in to 2nd tier nba franchise legacy territory…

shoot, thinking about it more, leon already has sold him, before the season even began, to the point jimmy d was certain of it at the beginning of this year…

one very apparent thing in his talk to the players prior to the playoff run – that guy is waaaaaaay sweaty for public affirmation/validation…

which is sort of ironical, cuz of how much he detests us all…

and, think how much this is doing for his musical career…i know he can’t wait to hit the stage again…

oh yeah, the whole band will be back…

seems like an easy answer to the question regarding should a player/staff member accept an invite to the whitehouse…cm punk in his direct and elegant style had some thoughts on it…

from a principle standpoint though, that’s our house…should not matter who’s working out of it…no sir/ma’am not one bit ..

also, sort of like what draymond green had to say about wemby ditching the handshake thing after we beat them…

he phrased it as: look the killer in the eye, or something to that effect…

feels more about, if i got some kind of strong feelings toward you – i’d like the opportunity to communicate that to you, directly…shoot, no direct beef in the moment, no words words really needed at all, body language works just fine…just don’t touch me, at all…

i don’t know, most likely a decision that can be postponed for a while…have to see when we play the wizards next season…

hmmmmmm, maybe the ballroom will be finished…check in on the reflecting swamp…

Welcome mr jackson, i promise we won’t bother you about your time as POBO of the Knicks! LOL

Been a fan since 1999

At least you got to see the last 2 seasons of the 90s team, and the magical run of 99. The next 2 decades, well let’s not talk about it. 😉 😛

Happy to say raised my son to love the knicks ,he has a photo of him and I and Clyde on his wall

Awww, that is really cool. 🧡💙 How wild was your celebration when game 5 ended?

COME ON DOLAN ,KEEP OUR GUYS ,PAY OUR GUYS

That’s the spirit! 👏

Getting hysterical about something that hasn’t happened yet and imagining that it leads to the worst possible outcome for the Knicks is a big part of what we do here!

Happy early fathers day to everyone.
Cheers to Rick Brunson. Best Dad in America.

LOL!

Rick might not have been a factor in 99, but since then he worked hard to give us the best player we could hope to have leading us to the promise land. Perfect job!

And this made me remember the 2rd pick we lost for tampering in the Brunson signing… i was used to see us get screwed over by other teams doing this kind of stuff, it’s much better to be on the other side for a change.

I listened to a Dunc’d on podcast with Jonathan Givorny and learned that the middle and bottom of the draft in the next few years will very likely be bad because changes in NiL rules will enable players to play five years of college ball and they will make more money in college than on two way or on typical second round NBA contracts. This year there are very few Europeans opting in to the draft because college pays more. If this is a decent draft year we should use our picks right away or trade them for several years in the future.

If this is a decent draft year we should use our picks right away or trade them for several years in the future.

Supposedly the bottom falls out of the draft early in the 2nd rd.

Nice OG Skechers commerical for The Tip
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TG_J6341Kw

I don’t get the big deal on going into 2nd apron for this one year only.

No one does. If Dolan didn’t open his mouth we’d all assume Leon would behave rationally and go over it like Boston did, like Cleveland did, and like OKC is likely about to do.

I can’t pretend to know much of anything about the second apron. I have a good business education, but like others here, little desire to study that math for a week.

But I have been a Knicks fan for fifty years, so I know me some James Dolan.

Is it crazy to assume that JD was just being his “super focused on his own checkbook” self? As well as his “I will do something that seems like it will make the cash register ring, even though it’s plainly a failed business strategy” thing?

Like trading those two picks to get Eddy Curry, that became LaMarcus Aldridge and Joakim Noah, then trying to get Noah back blah blah blah

Like trading the entire team to get Melo, then wondering why Melo had no supporting staff blah blah blah

Like trading Camby and Mark Jackson and the draft rights to Nene to get McDyess, then trying to get Camby back blah blah blah

and on and on and on….

Is it possible JD thought he was putting Leon in a stronger negotiating position, so that when they make a modest offer to Mitch, or to Shamet, that it seems Leon is being generous?

I think Mitch is the least replaceable of the three. I know I’m changing from stats into opera, but I was quite moved seeing the huge hug that KAT gave Mitch at the end of Finals Game 5. I think both of them realized they couldn’t have made it the distance without the other one there, because their skillsets complement each other so beautifully. And when one gets into trouble, there is no downside.

Life is just a carnival this is the ride you get to take for free!

My prediction — we bring just about everyone back and go into the second apron — but go there in a way that we can drop down the following year.

I’d love to trade away our picks for future picks and/or consolidate them into one pick.

That’s my prediction and I would bet good money on it.

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