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Knick Knacks: Why New York won’t not repeat as champs, why Reggie Miller still sucks & why it matters – Posting & Toasting
Jordan Clarkson re-signing with Knicks on one-year deal – SNY
NBA Eastern Conference Outlook: Knicks Look to Defend Title Stream of National Basketball Association – CBS Sports
Jalen Brunson strolls into club while Nets’ Michael Porter Jr. stopped for ID – New York Daily News
Knick Knacks: Ranking the Knicks’ 5 biggest threats for the 2027 title – Posting & Toasting
Recently waived Jonas Valanciunas among centers on Knicks’ radar – SNY
Knicks x Jets Crossover Show | Training Camp Preview | Special Guest Jake Asman – Knicks Fan TV
Which Knicks Demons Have Been Exorcised After Winning A Championship?! (DRAFT) | KFS OFFSEASON – Knicks Film School
Pod Strickland Episode 614: Lebron’s Last Hope – The Strickland
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105 replies on “Knicks Morning News (2026.07.28)”
Good morning! Got a few minutes before the boy wakes up so without further ado I present you the the All-Storyline Eastern Conference playoffs and welcome any adjustments/personal preferences:
Round 1:
1 NYK
8 WAS
4 IND
5 DET
2 BOS
7 MIA
3 PHI
6 CLE
I swerved and gave the Heat to the Celtics. That’s a much more recent rivalry than Knicks-Heat, and I think it would be way more fun to fuck up Trae Young (who is just embarrassing himself lately pretending to still be our rival).
Round 2:
1 NYK
4 IND
2 BOS
3 PHI
Adam Silver’s wet dream
ECF:
1 NYK
3 PHI
Knicks in 5. And we’re still taking over that arena.
We took over San Antonio’s arena all the way in Texas. No way we don’t own Philadelphia again, even with LeBron
I think those predictions are as good as any that one can make at this point, or as bad.
There is tremendous upheaval in the East, unlike any year I can remember. Boston, Philly, and Miami are radically changed. Indiana is laying in the weeds. Detroit is regrouping. Orlando is maturing. Toronto is in flux. Washington is not terrible. No one is tanking.
When I first got access to an NBA locker room, Howard Beck was BY FAR the NICEST PERSON to me. He took the time to show me where we go, where I could sit, etc. Everyone else was borderline hostile to me (bloggers vs newspaper/tv folks). I’m pretty sure one local TV guy was a huge a-hole to me. Can’t remember who or why. Also one local newspaper person had a HUGE issue with one of the KnickerBlogger writers and would text me and that writer odd quasi-threatening messages.
And if in your day job you had to deal with James Dolan year after year after year, you’d might hope his business fails too.
Yesterday Macri floated the idea of an Embiid/AD swap. The problems with that are it immediately turns a poor defensive team into a good one, it exorcises the “can’t get thru the 2nd round” issue, and most annoyingly it makes them semi-rootable. Don’t do it Washington, no matter what the Sixers include to sweeten the package.
FWIW those were not predictions. That was me manipulating matchups to get the best story lines.
I suspect the final East standings will be the random result of who was healthiest and who tried the hardest. The difference between the 2 seed and the 7 seed might be 2 wins.
I want the Knicks to sign DeRozan just so the same talking heads, who are acting like the Sixers are getting the 2019 versions of LeBron and Embiid, will be quiet.
Anthony “Street Clothes” Davis would not worry me any more than Embiid, and probably a lot less.
Pretty sure we chose Clarkson over DeRozan. No room at the inn now for DeMar.
Yeah AD has the same risk if not more, for injuries. But healthy he is a better defender than Embiid.
But seems like trading one risk for another, so not sure it would make any sort of difference.
Re: Maxey, he did have a bad series against us last year, but he was dynamite vs. the Celts and the Sixers were pretty much spent and exposed against us. He also was fantastic against us in the 2024 playoffs. I would expect that having a much better team around him will free him up to a degree that wasn’t possible against our juggernaut. He has the chance to be pretty special.
“Yeah AD has the same risk if not more, for injuries. But healthy he is a better defender than Embiid.
But seems like trading one risk for another, so not sure it would make any sort of difference.”
Embiid at anything above 80% is a threat to put KAT and Drummond into foul trouble. Then what?
AD, not so much.
Considering how Brunson just toyed with Wemby, I would think that whatever AD provides on D won’t make much difference compared to Embiid’s flopping his way to 20 FTAs.
Ran into Beck in Vegas. Can confirm he was very friendly and seemed pretty pro stats revolution.
In no way did the subject come up, but the Dolan resentment theory would not surprise me just based on the fact its James Dolan.
Why in the world would the Wizards want to bring in Embiid, and also help a conference rival in the process while simultaneously contaminating their young core?
What we did to Maxey was incredible but I think he’ll be OK.
Re: LeBron… I loved the idea of him coming here for the vet min but I was also just guessing that he’d still be good based on very limited public information.
I think it says a lot that the three best teams (NY, SA, OKC) weren’t interested in him even at the minimum, and all the teams competing for him (GS, CLE, MIA, PHI) were desperate teams that no one considered contenders.
Leon, in particular, really knows LeBron. And Leon also loves getting guys he knows. I’m going to use the transitive property here to conclude that if Leon didn’t want LeBron*, he is probably more washed than people think.
He said himself he was ready to call it a career before the Rockets series. And then he was extraordinary in the Rockets series. But maybe that was just a dead cat bounce, like 2021 Derrick Rose. (I suspect it helped a great deal that the Rockets are dumb and dysfunctional.)
* and no, I’m not buying for one second that LeBron took us off his board because we won the chip. He’s living in NYC FFS. All signs (and reports of varying credibility) indicate that we said no to him, not the other way around.
The Wiz aren’t done rebuilding. They would probably welcome some future first rounders from Philly, especially with LeBron having a very limited shelf life, AD also aging out, and Brown’s uncertain extension situation.
One thing Brad Stephens did in the Jaylen Brown trade was genius:
He was only able to get two firsts from Philly, but he got them in 2028 and 2031.
That eliminated their ability to trade their 2027, 2029, 2030, 2032 picks.
He knew the risks of helping Philly, but he made sure they’d be handicapped to improve further.
LeBron isn’t a plug and play guy anymore because his defense has fallen off. The Knicks and OKC have very balanced starting lineups that would be thrown off if they forced LeBron into the starting unit.
Kinda think SAS could’ve used him at the 4, but they already brought in Tobias Harris, kept Champagnie and Barnes, plus drafted 2 centers.
Lebron is still good, but you need to be careful who you put around him. Not really convinced the pieces in Philly fit, but there’s enough talent shoved onto the roster that they’re worth worrying about.
Maybe some of the Philly guys can have their Clarkson epiphany and adjust their game.
There was zero chance of LeBron and his Traveling Circus coming here once this team won the title. No way that any of the players wanted a ring-chasing drama queen on his last legs here to disrupt the chemistry and continuity of the starting lineup.
And from my perspective, I am very goddamn thankful for that. I would wa-a-a-ay rather root against him than for him. Fuck him and his Decision bullshit forever. And fuck the Sixers and their fair-weather fan base and their floppin’ crybaby Mr. Trust the Process. I hope he goes out with the same sad whimper fellow Knicks tormenter Michael Jordan went out with.
Other than Wemby, I’m not sure a playoff opponent of the Leon era has terrified me as much as Maxey. The guy is lightning fast, can get off his shot at any time, from anywhere on the court. I know the eye test is scarier than the advanced stats. But other than this past series, when he was clearly exhausted, I hold my breath whenever he has the ball in his hands against us.
We often disagree, Z-Man, but I admire your ability to hold a grudge.
LeBron’s not on my personal list, but there are many players who I’ve had similar irrational feelings about.
(Although strangely I can’t seem to think of any of them now. Maybe the Knicks title released me? Kevin Durant used to be on there but I don’t care about him any more… Trae Young is a joke now… who do I still hate? I can’t remember)
Knicks Film School did an episode where they drafted various Knicks demons that got exorcised by us winning the title. I’ve only listened to a bit, but I’m at least somewhat shocked that someone drafted Phil being hired to run the team ahead of Isiah being hired to run the team.
Regardless, I’m with Hubert in that I now hate a lot of people less. Not all. Haliburton can still get some. Embiid, etc. But other grudges disappeared with the title.
Maxey is a real one, for sure.
Alan, I think it really hurt Maxey that his wingmen were a washed PG13, a gimpy Embiid, a ditzy Oubre Jr., and a rookie VJ. Plus Philly’s bench was pretty terrible.
While I hope that Philly self-destructs due to Embiid’s knees, LeBron’s age, VJ’s sophomore jinx, Brown’s need to prove that the Celts made a big mistake, etc…Maxey is very hard to dismiss or even root against. I never saw or heard him do anything that didn’t come across as upbeat, professional, and respectful…not to opponents, refs, fans. I think he’s one of the most rootable opponents in the NBA.
Got to say I hate Wemby because he tried to injure guys. Anyone who does that goes on the list. Jordan was never on it because I had too much respect for him, he played hard and clean(ish). Embiid is on it because Mitch. Laimbeer was on it because everybody.
Halliburton’s a good one, Alan. But the weird thing is I like him as much as I hate him.
But Rama nailed it — I still hate Wemby. One of the reasons I’m so mad we lost Mitch is I never want him to get revenge against us. I know Mitch was awful in the finals (playing with mental health issues and a broken finger) but Mitch at full strength dominated Wemby multiple times in the regular season and cup final.
I irrationally hated Jordan as a teenager/young adult as much as Z-Man hates LeBron, but Jordan was such a bully he beat the hate out of me until all that was left was for me to meekly submit to his will.
I still sometimes passive aggressively say things I don’t mean because of that old hatred, like “actually I think LeBron’s the GOAT”.
And I will always root for the Bulls to lose. Which they have been doing quite nicely.
Again, I have nothing but admiration for LeBron as an ambassador for the game and as arguably the GOAT. He’s a good guy for sure, but I never want to see him in a Knicks uniform after the whole The Decision thing, especially now that we won a championship. Yet unlike Zeke, who I despised as an opponent and as a representative of the NBA, and whose hiring made me sick on the day it was made even before he demolished the franchise’s credibility, I would be fine with LeBron coming here as a coach or executive some day.
Wemby is the ultimate French stereotype, – so he’s very easy to hate.
However, I’m a little conflicted because he’s both Michael Jordan and Isiah Thomas. He instills fear in players by puting them on a poster, giving them 40 and then telling the media he’s better then them, which I respect a lot.
But he also instill fear by injuring opponents, if they show him up.
Thing is, odds are no one will retaliate because the league is no longer an honorable team sport but a grown up version of AAU where everyone is looking out for #1. Embiid has been doing it for years. Even on a current tight knit champion Knicks team, – no one did shit after Wemby tried to take Brunson out twice in the NBA finals.
It all changed when the league sentences became punitive. This is the same phenomenon that brought down the entire cosa nostra, – why wouldn’t it end simple basketball team brotherhood.
Something that will not happen is Draymond signing with the Knicks. I imagine he’ll be back with the Warriors or orchestrate a move to Philly or something… I am curious as an exercise how he’d fit in NY
Agree it won’t happen, which is probably for the best because I have no idea how I’d reconcile thinking it would be a damn good basketball fit with the fact that I hate that fuckin’ guy.
Not sure Dray’s defense is quite worth how terrible he is on offense at this point. So we could probably use him as our backup C.
My loathing of Reggie Miller persists to this day.
Nine seconds notwithstanding, probably wouldn’t give him much thought anymore were I not constantly subjected to his thinly veiled anti-Knick bias and puerile observations as a featured analyst on national NBA broadcasts.
Don’t want Draymond. Don’t want old guys. Want young guys.
I actually like Draymond most (but definitely not all) of the time when he’s not on a basketball court. Once in a while he says some dumb stuff (maybe for clicks), but he can also be kind of insightful at times.
A while ago I mentioned Ben Simmons as a 3rd C candidate. Obviously it has a near zero chance of happening and even so would require massive vetting on Leon’s part, but if he’s reasonably healthy I can think of much worse ways to fill a 14th roster spot. Rich Paul seems to be lobbying for him to go to the Sixers, but does he really want to be in a team with Joel Embiid again?
Wemby did say no to the escalator clause that would give him the 30% max instead of 25%, and that would basically be a lock if he plays 65 games this year.
So prepare for every non-Knicks fan to have a very different view of the guy.
“Rich Paul seems to be lobbying for him (Ben Simmons) to go to the Sixers, but does he really want to be in a team with Joel Embiid again?”
Philadelphia is probably #30 out of 30 NBA teams that Ben Simmons would consider if he wanted to resume his NBA career (super-crazy-odd that he might have mentioned it). It’s where the downslide of his career had its origins. Plus, he seems very happy just fishing in his post-playing days, anyway. He and we should probably just leave it alone.
I feel like VJ’s been very overrated in this whole thing.
He was good for a rookie but he was not nearly good enough to be a starter on a contender.
Put that guy on the floor in a playoff series and I’m either hiding Brunson there or letting OG play 7 feet off of him and wreak havoc.
Wemby strikes me as a kid who has been pampered and spoiled his whole life and couldn’t deal with being embarrassed and humiliated on a national (worldwide) stage. I’ll give him a bit of grace if he shows some contrition and maturity, and if the League (i.e. refs) stops protecting him. But the way he acted is unacceptable. And don’t forget his comments re: “The Knicks don’t play a basketball style as sophisticated as the Heat or Thunder.” Eat some crow, dude!
It’s hard to imagine we could do better than Ben Simmons as the third center
Excepting trade, of course, but then we lose somebody
If Wemby were in the WNBA he’d be getting fucked up regularly.
I think I prefer Sochan to Simmons, Rama.
Rich Paul had this to say recently, though, and it’s tantalizing to think about:
But the guy just seems too scared to get fouled.
Perhaps it’s the championship halo effect, but I don’t hate Wemby as much as I did a month ago. He’s a young, intelligent man with a strong competitive instinct, which causes him to say and do lots of dumb things given the pressure he’s under. I’ll give him some grace given that it’s his first year in the playoffs.
With all that said, he needs to cut the dirty foul bullshit before someone does it for him by deliberately injuring him as payback.
If any other player had done what Wemby did to Naz Reid, they would have been suspended for the following game, no questions asked. His clearly intentional elbow to Reid’s throat was no less egregious than Draymond’s flagrant against LeBron that led to his suspension in Game 5 of the 2016 Finals and turned that series around.
Watching the league office twist itself into knots to justify its NOT suspending Wemby was, in effect, an announcement to the world that the fix was in.
I hate Reggie Miller. And Richard Jefferson. And Tim Hardaway sr
Here is a highlight reel from Simmons’ 2024-25 season.
I would take that player over Sochan, especially in a limited role. Granted, he turned the ball over too much, but he wouldn’t be handling the ball very much as a nominal backup C. For me, it would all be about a) his attitude and b) his health. He just turned 30 and if he could show out on a minimum deal in limited minutes, there could be a payday in his future—not the $30M his nutty agent suggests, but maybe a 1yr/$8M type of thing.
It might be just a blip, but his FT shooting was much better than it had been (24-33), and his career average is 59%. He also had a very low FTr, so he wasn’t getting hack-a-ben’ed. Just sayin’.
Karlo Matkovic. That’s our guy.
I know we’ve discussed this already, but just love seeing it in such stark terms.
I mentioned Matkovic several times about 4-5 months ago and was roundly scoffed at. The Pellies already picked up his option.
Don’t forget Kevin Durant wanted to come here last year, too, and ended up on his backup team even before we won a title.
A Bill Simmons listener suggested a Jalen Duren sign-and-trade for Embiid on his podcast today.
Detroit would never do that, right? Please tell me Detroit would never do that.
Duren was a disaster in the playoffs but he is also a battering ram and if he’s your 4th option on offense that’s pretty damn hard to stop.
LeBron James is going to take on primary ballhandling and PG duties for the Sixers, according to reports. The Lakers did that with him about six years ago, and he averaged double-digit assists per game. Does this change their starting lineup? Probably not.
Also: “There’s something funny about him spending more than the 76ers are paying him in a year on helicopters so he doesn’t have to live in Philly.”
Simmons? We talkin’ Simmons again?
I don’t hate it, lol. Maybe now that we’ve won a chip he’d know his place and not rock the boat.
Anyone see that clip of Michael Porter Jr. trying to get into a club and the bouncer was asking if he was on the list but then Brunson rolls up and they let him right in? Shit is hilarious.
That’s how New Yorker’s should treat Lebron all next year anywhere he goes in the city.
love that clip…thought it was fake
Damn dude. AI got me.
“Damn dude. AI got me.”
On the MPJ/JB clip, you mean? Or something else?
Fortunately the Mets game is a likely rainout tonight. Unfortunately, they’ll make up the game at some point.
Can’t the Knicks just sign Liam Robbins(on) right now to make me feel better that we have a filled-out roster? They can drop him later when (if?) someone better comes along.
A S&T with Duren for Embiid would be a headache to make work under the CBA. Not gonna promise it’s impossible, but it might actually be impossible. At the very least it would be unpalatable for Detroit based on who they can currently trade.
A swap at the deadline might be doable.
Draymond re-signed with Warriors. One year/$27.7M.
I’ve never had an issue with Draymond but even so it was very satisfying to watch him grovel to Jalen Brunson in the game 4 postgame.
Only thing better would have been if it were KAT.
Disagree. Everyone was shitting on Wemby this spring, especially all the veteran NBA players in the media.
We don’t even hate him half as much as they do in OKC and Minnesota.
The Pels did pick up his option, but he makes pennies, and thus is apron/cap friendly for us. You could, for example, trade Kolek or Dadiet plus assets for him. Maybe if you throw enough 2RPs plus Kolek or Dadiet you might get New Orleans to bite.
Of course, maybe they wouldn’t bite on that, and see Matko as a long-term piece. But he’s the kind of guy I’d be pretty excited about as a different flavor of backup big.
Haliburton seems like a nice enough guy in interviews, but I will never, ever forgive him for the choke sign at the end of game 1. One of the douchiest moves by an opponent in MSG since Reggie
And can you imagine if the Knicks had won that game in OT? It would have gone down as not only the douchiest but the dumbest gesture in playoff history
A S&T with Duren for Embiid would have to include VJ + Adem Bona.
I would be very happy getting Matko. Just throw a bunch of second-rounders (that we wouldn’t use, anyway) at ’em, and throw in Dadiet if you need to. The Derik Queen thing from last year indicates that Dumars may not be all that savvy. Sure, I’d rather keep Kolek (Deuce is not a PG, and then we’d only have JB and Alvie left), but I’d understand if he had to be a sacrificial lamb to get a center. They can have Dadiet/McCullar/Dillon Jones, etc.
You hated Jaime Jaquez Jr. with a passion for a while there.
https://c.tenor.com/vJwPtSe6Z5UAAAAC/tenor.gif
😂🤣😂
Karlo Matković ▪ Instagram: karlo.matkovic
Position: Power Forward ▪ Shoots: Right
6-10, 231lb (208cm, 104kg)
Team: New Orleans Pelicans
Born: March 30, 2001 (Age: 25-120d) in Livno, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Draft: New Orleans Pelicans, 2nd round (22nd pick, 52nd overall), 2022 NBA Draft
NBA Debut: October 23, 2024
Experience: 2 years
14.3 points/9.3 rebounds/2.0 blocks per 36 in his career (127 ORtg/117 DRtg), .604/.422/.732 shooting splits last season in 15 minutes per game off the bench
Matkovic is a decent floor-stretching big, but imo we need more of a defensive C.
Z-Man: I find this outside-the-box Ben Simmons idea so intriguing!
My association is Magic Johnson at center in place of Kareem in Game 6 of 1980 Finals. Not to compare two of the very greatest players ever to Ben Simmons and whichever Knick would apply in this analogy. Hukporti?
“Matkovic is a decent floor-stretching big, but imo we need more of a defensive C.”
Damn. That’s very true. Matkovic would have been better than Drummond, but especially now that we have Drummond, we need the archetype you just mentioned.
“Z-Man: I find this outside-the-box Ben Simmons idea so intriguing!”
Sorry, but no way in hell would I want Simmons. We’re not in the market for a reclamation project, and he’s the reclamatiest of all.
Simmons is (was) obviously a gifted passer, but I am thinking of him more for his defense. He’s 6’10” and 240lbs with a 7′ wingspan and was a DPoY candidate. Could he translate that into a cromulent backup C in today’s game somewhat positionless game? I think so.
But to be clear, I’m not advocating for him, just intrigued by the theoretical idea. Hey, maybe he’s the Bill Walton of 2026-27!
Bill Walton is a Hall of Famer. Ben Simmons is…….not. 🙂
Here’s an article in Men’s Health from June 29 about Ben. Good stuff.
We have a culture of dawgs…Ben has no balls. Mentally he folds faster like a cheap suit. I feel bad…he made hundred millions at the expense of his mental health.
Competetive wise, the warrior in him is washed up. Go use that money and start a compassionate non-profit and spend the rest of your life doing meangful work that benefits society. Better yet, find a tall athletic partner and build a family. Thats what Rich Paul should be telling him.
Kwame Brown has more fight in him than Ben does today.
I think there is literally one center in the NBA who is
a) good enough to replace Mitch
b) cheap enough for us to acquire
c) on his cheap contract for more than one year
d) on a team that has no motivation to win or avoid the relegation zone
And it’s Kel’el Ware.
If the Warriors suck this year, maybe you can add Al Horford to the list.
None of these other guys are ever gonna play.
Yes yes yes to what Director said re: Simmons.
Yes yes yes yes yes yes yes to Ware. (How is his defense, by the way?) Again, throw them a zillion picks that we’re never going to use, anyway. If anyone is worth it to us at this point in time, it’s him. Win/win, as I see it.
Hard no on Horford, at this point. Nothing against him other than I want a young guy we can work with to develop.
At this moment, I would welcome Jericho Sims back. He’s at least the right archetype to be a Mitch replacement.
Shams:
Normally I’d say “another one bites the dust” about another center gone elsewhere, but Broome was not even on *my* expansive list of potentials.
I was hoping Broome would get waived. I’m hardly enamored, but he’s capable of doing some basic center stuff and is young.
I dunno guys, not feeling great about our non-KAT centers, and not nearly as confident as some that a sterling option will emerge. I think we just won the championship and intentionally downgraded.
We’ll still be very, very good, but come on now, that’s a shitty thing to do!
Yes! Yes, I did. I even lobbied to make Jacques Sucks the Potvin Sucks of Knicks fans (rightfully so).
See, that’s the kind of thing I just let go of June 13th. Now I can’t even remember it.
Lol, pessimists gotta pessimist!
I never considered Jaquez a villain because what he did was a rookie “tried hard but got there too late” thing. Dirty on paper but not malicious.
That pales in comparison to Hali, who purposely stuck a knife in the belly of every Knicks fan and twisted it while yukking it up on our home court because he got a lucky fucking bounce.
I hope that fucker never comes close to winning a ring.
I don’t understand how knick fans, even ones as young as TNFH, could hate Draymond. He’s like Oak and Mase but if Oak and Mase were great at basketball; and if they were smarter and nicer and cooler; and if they punched Jordan Poole in the neck, which I know you guys secretly want to do too.
In fact, since the subject is being discussed, hatred is toxic. Your hatred of Dray, or LeBron, or Reg, or Hali, or Hubert, or anyone, is poisoning you not them.
I can’t think of anyone I hate. Dolan was up there for a while. So was Doogie. But I’ve come to like Doogie.
As for Dolan, I consciously uncoupled from him in the best interests of the children. Over the years I’ve come to peace with that squished little, goat-faced, amusical, carmelo-loving bastard. But not enough to watch the video of him holding the O’Brien. I’d rather have toxic sludge course through my veins until early death sees me worm-ridden and decomposed than witness that.
Even at 40 Al Horford is much better than Andre Drummond and would be a great stopgap solution.
Fair
Wandering around I’ve stumbled on the fact that Andre Drummond apparently has the NBA record in career TRB average. Huh.
I like Matkovic for a few reasons:
1. Can shoot threes and FTs
2. Athletic as hell— gets lots of dunks, lob threat
3. Gets a fair number of blocks
4. Primary weakness is defensive awareness, which can be coached up
5. Will only be 25
We’re picking out of the JC Penney’s bargain bin here, so the pickings are slim, but he does some things I like.
I don’t think I’ve ever literally hated any of these people, even Dolan.
I am often intensely frustrated with folks who stand in the way of outcomes that I am passionate about.
That’s a mouthful to say, though, so I usually just say hate for short.
If we did snag Matkovic, I’d be fine with it because he has upside, but would hope that it would be in addition to a legit rim protector, not instead of one.
Here’s an article about how the Knicks are the only team that hasn’t filled a two-way spot yet.
“If we did snag Matkovic, I’d be fine with it because he has upside, but would hope that it would be in addition to a legit rim protector, not instead of one.”
Well, yeah, but we’d be lucky enough to snag *one* guy. We’re not getting two guys with almost zero salary to give out.
“Well, yeah, but we’d be lucky enough to snag *one* guy. We’re not getting two guys with almost zero salary to give out.”
If we salary-dump Dadiet (or use him in a trade for a vet’s minimum salary coming back) we have room for two vet’s minimums plus one of Nickel (my preference) or Kayil.
I previously indicated that I think the Knicks are holding off on trading Dadiet in case they have to aggregate his non-minimum salary with either a minimum or, say, Deuce for a bigger one coming back at some point before the deadline for a better option at C or to replace someone at another position that gets injured for the season.
Keep working it, Leon, you got this!
Relax, Doogie. Leon knows what he’s doing.
At this point, his best bet is to wait til preseason when it becomes more evident that other teams will need more ball-handling, shooting, whatever. Then he can pull a need-for-need trade for another center.
Also, there will probably be some surprising roster cuts before/during training camp that could gift us another center.
Getting locked into a 2-year contract for Nick Richards or whoever is maybe the worst move to make at this point.
“Relax, Doogie. Leon knows what he’s doing.
At this point, his best bet is to wait til preseason when it becomes more evident that other teams will need more ball-handling, shooting, whatever. Then he can pull a need-for-need trade for another center.
Also, there will probably be some surprising roster cuts before/during training camp that could gift us another center.
Getting locked into a 2-year contract for Nick Richards or whoever is maybe the worst move to make at this point.”
Yep, I agree to the point of giving you the thumbs up. It’s a head/heart thing with me—my head knows you’re right, but my heart is impatient for a full roster.
Apparently, Jericho Sims is a trade target for the Lakers. They need a third center too,
I don’t believe Matkovic is really available. The Pels waived Looney right after picking up Matkovics’ option, so they clearly made their choice.
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7473543/2026/07/28/lakers-center-depth-nba-free-agency/
The Pels also just signed Christian Kokolo, which gives them roughly 36 centers. They’ve got a hoarding problem.
Apparently, it’s a training camp deal.
We should trade for…Jericho Sims.
We won’t need to trade for him. He’s more than 50/50 to be cut, I think. Could be wrong—they only have Turner and Ware ahead of him.
At this point I think Leon should avoid tying up cap space in any of the low-floor/low-ceiling guys like Sims, Richards, Olynyk, etc. That level of player will always be available for a couple of seconds. Just have faith that someone with upside will shake loose. We have a really excellent team as is. There is no harm in waiting teams out.
“At this point I think Leon should avoid tying up cap space in any of the low-floor/low-ceiling guys…….There is no harm in waiting teams out.”
Head: Correctamundo. Heart: Dammit.
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