News & Blogs
Knicks’ Jalen Brunson to host 52nd season premiere of ‘Saturday Night Live’ – SNY
Thirty-Third and Thriving – Posting & Toasting
Knicks Mailbag: How can NY address lack of frontcourt depth? – SNY
The unique brilliance of Jalen Brunson – Posting & Toasting
What I’m hearing ahead of Knicks preseason: Jalen Brunson, KAT, roster battles and more – The New York Times
Knicks News: Jalen Brunson Takes Are Getting WILD + Haliburton Reacts to Knicks Title – Knicks Fan TV
Jonathan Macri Loves the Knicks | KFS SPOTLIGHT | Presented by @TytoFlight – Knicks Film School
YT News
79 replies on “Knicks Morning News (2026.09.24)”
Zero chance Leon let’s him walk away for nothing….need to pivot & reset asap by trading him for two young bigs with an upside.
I think the best Leon can do is Sengun + Capella for KAT and this let’s him easily keep Deuce.
Well, that would be pretty bad for championship chasing, but better than nothing I guess.
It comes down to how much KAT wants to be here. I think he really wants to be here and will eventually compromise.
I also don’t think you ever lose a player for “nothing.” In KAT’s case, if he opts out and goes elsewhere as a FA for something close to the max, you would immediately free up $61M in second apron space, plus you gain freedom from the risk of that contract aging badly, as many contracts for guys in their mid 30’s do. Other good players will want to come here.
One of the most glorious accomplishments of Leon’s tenure is that the Knicks are cool again, maybe even cool enough for KD. (Seriously, fuck KD!)
I don’t see it, Director.
Leon & Wes definitely operated that way while building the championship team, so I see where you’re coming from. But KAT is their guy, and this is their team. I think they want to ride this one out.
The max KAT can receive from another team next summer is 4 years, $260M (for his age 32-35 seasons). Looking at your list of teams, that doesn’t seem unreasonable when you look at what Kawhi and Trae Young just got. It only takes one team, and the Hawks, Clippers, Nets, and Bulls all seem like possibilities.
If he is willing to risk playing out the season, and he plays well, he’ll get that contract. Probably from us.
He’s represented by CAA and knows really well that by not signing, he’s at risk of being traded now and that risk will keep growing to nearly 100% by February.
I don’t blame him if he’s about his paper but can’t have it both ways.
NY legend or an extra $30-40m after tax?
My opinion is that there is a very low probability that KAT gets 4/$260M from Leon no matter how well he plays this year (given his ceiling, which is second team all-NBA.) If that is what he is adamant about getting paid, a sign-and-trade will be worked out, or he will be free to sign elsewhere.
I will continue to feel that way so long as Dolan’s edict is in full effect, which I expect it to be unless the CBA is modified. It’s fairly well established that having a player making 35% of the cap who isn’t a MVP-level guy makes sustaining a contending team virtually impossible. In this case, he wouldn’t even be the best player on the team, and not anywhere close to as popular as Brunson.
Frankly, I don’t even think there would be much outcry if Leon (Dolan) refused to pay him that much and let him walk.
The other issue is that I would not blame Brunson one iota if he insists on being the highest paid player on the team. While I don’t fully buy into all the “he took a $100M discount” hype, he has certainly earned a 30+% of the cap extension. So KAT’s extension will kind of set the floor for Brunson, and I’m sure Leon knows that.
He’s already a NY legend and that will never change.
I think you’re overstating the risk.
Yes, Leon traded IQ & Randle in the same situation, but he packaged them and traded up for a better player. He’s never traded someone for lesser pieces.
It really comes down to how KAT handles it, which we’ll know in a few weeks. If he comes to training camp disgruntled and making a big stink about disrespect and sacrifice, then we have a problem.
Question for the crowd: When the expansion draft happens, can players with no-trade clauses and/or trade kickers be left unprotected without any recourse?
I’m wondering whether some teams will want to leave overpaid stars unprotected in the hope that the new teams will want name guys to put fannies in the seats.
Z-man, I don’t see why not. In fact if there certain contract types that couldn’t be selected that could enable some teams to protect more players than others could so I find it unlikely to have restrictions like that.
KAT gonna get his money or play somehwhere to win more titles. I don’t see any seriously contending team giving him the max
I’m wondering if there will be something in the collectively bargained expansion agreement that will force teams to protect certain classes of players, maybe based on something like years of experience or contract type. There might be pushback from the union regarding using expansion to dump salary against a veteran player’s wishes.
That’s the rub.
If he wants the max now, he’s being unreasonable.
But if he risks playing out the season and next summer teams are willing to pay him that, then that’s his value and we should probably pay it.
Guys, they’ll get it done with KAT.
Being a Florida , Texas or Tennessee legend saves an additional 10% on gross income due to NY politicians profligate spending.
Tens of millions here and tens of millions there, and pretty soon you are talking about real money!
The job of Leon is to get KAT to extend for the best deal possible for The Knicks. The job of KAT’s agent is to get the most money he can for his player. This is all part of the negotiation process and I am certain something will get worked out that will be palpable for both sides. It will probably be something that’s a little more than whatever discounted rate we think KAT should take for the team but less than whatever number his agent is working out now.
Or maybe Leon let’s him ride it out, we win another title and the team gets blown up.
Director, I think it is legitimate to entertain how much losing KAT and replacing him with 2-3 players will hurt the team. Obviously it would depend on the players. One would certainly have to be a starting caliber C in the $20-30M range, and the other a very good role player, i.e. a lot better than Deuce, Shamet, Alvarado, Clarkson, Drummond, and Mo.
I don’t think Sengun and Capela are the right combo, but it wouldn’t be terrible. Sengun is 24 and a really good offensive player, but KAT is Bill Russell on D compared to him. Capela is close to washed. Anyway, KAT would have to agree to extending with them, and maybe he has no interest in playing in Houston. And that’s the thing. KAT would have to want to extend with the receiving team to make a trade worthwhile.
Only way KAT gets the max from any team is if we win the championship again.
Doesn’t matter what he says on SNL or training camp…matters if he signs extension or not. Talk is cheap. Leon has no choice but to pivot between now and February regardless how pleasant and likable KAT is with fans and media or hwo well he plays.
Letting KAT walk for space between 1st and 2nd apron is suicide.
Zero chance Leon let’s this happen even if its for two lesser bigs or even a big and a duplicative type guard/wing player to me moved for another big at a later date.
I get it but what I’m saying is the risk isn’t KAT walking. The risk is having to pay him a little more than you want because he was willing to play out the season without an extension and he established his market value at a higher level.
And honestly I don’t even see that as very likely. I’m with Marechal. This will get done.
“Being a Florida , Texas or Tennessee legend saves an additional 10% on gross income due to NY politicians profligate spending.”
Personally, I would gladly give up 10% of my income to have the privilege of living large in arguably the greatest city in the world, and to play deep into the playoffs in what is the greatest basketball arena in the world (don’t take my word for it, just look at ticket prices.)
Paying your third best player ~30%+ in his age 32-36 is borderline stupid and Leon is not stupid. Forget what we did last year and how likable he is.
To put it succinctly, Director: we’re a long way from DEFCON 1.
I love your style. The solid colors and the abstract nature of it. Really calming.
I’m with you. Zero chance I’m going to Florida to make even 20%. But then again, I gave up ~10% of my income a couple of times in my career not to switch jobs within Mahattan itself.
It doesn’t make logical sense for KAT not to sign a $200m extension and a good time for the rest of his career. But the fact is that he’s been sitting on it all summer and now we know that they stopped negotiations as they too far apart. It’s really hard for me to stay optimistic in this sityuation. Hope I’m wrong.
If push comes to shove, I think Dolan goes over the 2nd Apron to keep KAT. Losing Mitch is not the same as losing KAT, even for a guy like Sengun.
But the real question isn’t do we keep KAT — we’re keeping KAT — the question is who do we need to lose to keep KAT?
Hart and Mikal? OG? Deuce on top of them?
I’m blowing up wing stop before I try to replace KAT.
EB why would you think that Dolan would go into the second apron? There was zero equivocation in his decree, nor any hint that there would be an exception.
Dolan has zero loyalty to anyone other than himself. He has basically told Leon, you can go right up to the second apron, and I’ll pay the luxury tax on that amount, but not a penny more.
If anything, winning a championship might make him even more resolved to stay under it. He got a huge monkey off his back. At this point, I doubt he cares as much about winning another championship at all costs as he does about filling MSG every night for top dollar while he concentrates on things like the Sphere stuff.
Wishcasting Dolan doing what we want him to do has never worked. It probably won’t work this time either. His attitude is most likely, “It’s your problem, Leon, that’s why I pay you the big bucks. Figure it out however you want, but stay under that fucking apron.”
This pretty much answers the question. He’s not filling up MSG at top dollar without KAT.
So I’ll refer you to the actual crux of my point, who can we most afford to lose to keep KAT?
Eb, we’re not loosing OG or Mikal to keep KAT at 30%+ nor should we.
Another reason why I’m not optimistic is that neither Knicks nor KAT’s CAA team denied Sham’s report that they’re so far apart that they actually stopped talking to each other.
A simple tweet saying that negotiations are ongoing and they hope to completed soon as both sides want this put behind them before the start of season would have made sense….Crickets. Zip. Zilch. Nata.
“But the real question isn’t do we keep KAT — we’re keeping KAT — the question is who do we need to lose to keep KAT?
Hart and Mikal? OG? Deuce on top of them?
I’m blowing up wing stop before I try to replace KAT.”
I would think that blowing up wing stop would not sit well with Brunson, but that’s besides the point. Building a true contender around a KAT-Brunson pairing making upwards of 70% of the cap is an impossible task, especially considering how much team chemistry played into the successful run.
I get that KAT is a top-20 player in the NBA, and many of those guys are on max deals, but it’s bad business to pay him at that level.
“This pretty much answers the question. He’s not filling up MSG at top dollar without KAT.”
Sorry, EB, but this is a ridiculous statement. If he was traded for Sengun and Capela, for example, every game would still be a sellout and ticket prices would probably not drop a single dollar.
Director, just know that there is no deadline in the immediate future for them to figure this out. There are 5 months between now and the trade deadline, and even after that, an extension can be reached.
I asked AI to give me the top 10 centers in the NBA under 28yrs old and from that list the only hald way decent option was Sengun and Fertita is both crazy and rich enough to go with a max KD & KAT lineup.
After we just saw what max Brown and Giannis got traded for, – I’m not sure Leon can do better than Sengun.
It makes emotional sense.
That contract isn’t just about less dollars. He’s been the top recruit, the #1 pick, signed two supermax deals, and now he’s an NBA champion and NYC legend.
From his POV, it makes no sense that NOW you’re telling me I’m worth less than I’ve always been.
This contract is an identity crisis. He’s not going to access the logical part of his brain til he’s done processing the emotional bit.
And Leon is most likely an expert on this and will afford him all the patience in the world.
Zman, I agree….good point; Its definitively early but its all about what Leon’s alternative options are now. We’ll never know that part.
What I meant to say is “if the right deal hits Leon’s desk, he has no choice than to say Mazal” That’s the risk KAT has to live with and it increases as we get closer to February.
KAT put up a league-leading 9.4 BPM in the playoffs during our championship run.
KAT is #9 in the NBA with a 4.6 EPM. Not Brunson. Not OG. KAT.
You’re delusional if you think we’re contenders without KAT.
It’s entirely possible we’re not contenders if we lose any of our starters, but I’m moving Mikal and Hart well before I’m moving KAT.
KAT has a player option for next season. We have KAT for 2 years. We’re not losing KAT anytime soon.
100% agree on this. He’s an emotional guy and that’s exctly why I haven’t been optimistic all summer.
That is a fair point and consistent with the feelings of a lot of folks who believe the availability of a good deli and having Lincoln Center a few subway stops up the road are worth the extra taxes and the shitty weather.
But other folks think differently. I am also sure his financial team is going to do their fiduciary responcibility and tell him, first the Knicks are asking him to take a potential 10M per year haircut and THEN the 45M they are offering you is getting taxed at and additional 10%. That is serious money, especially when you look at how much it becomes invested over the next 50 years.
That better be a mighty tasty bialy to pass up that cash.
Besides Dolan being an asshat of the highest level, the absolute lack of appropriate media messaging coming out of the organization is a low-bar stupidity. Calming the likes of Director and the rest of y’all just seems to be something they care about a little less than making ticket prices affordable for the common man. Their social media department must consist of one curmudgeonly old man with fat fingers and a flip phone.
On the other hand, I can’t really interject about what KAT or the Knicks should do, salary-wise. I fairly recently took a 30% cut in salary to move from a highly toxic work environment to one that is incredibly positive, and I am now and forever perfectly happy with the decision. No various levels of generational wealth to consider, but I can still go out to dinner with Lady Raven now and again.
And geo, ESPN puts Jalen at 6, after Giannis and the usual others.
And I’m optimistic because we saw how the last emotional crisis played out.
You and I were actually in the opposite roles then. I panicked in January, proposed trading him for Ivica Zubac, and you told me to chill, that this was all part of the process.
Let me do the same for you now 🙂
KAT got married a month ago. They just spent 3 weeks in Africa. It’s literally his honeymoon.
If your boss was trying to get you to sign a contract that’s less than what you think you’re worth, would you talk to him on your honeymoon?
All shams said was “talks have stagnated” and “a deal is unlikely before training camp.”
I propose we think of that as “KAT’s busy getting busy, he’ll deal with this shit when he gets back to the office.”
Hubert, hope you’re right brother and this stalling is just simple inconvenience.
“KAT put up a league-leading 9.4 BPM in the playoffs during our championship run.
KAT is #9 in the NBA with a 4.6 EPM. Not Brunson. Not OG. KAT.”
Sorry, I’m going with the eye test on this one. KAT was our 3rd besr/mozt important player, and he wasn’t all that close to OG.
“You’re delusional if you think we’re contenders without KAT.”
Maybe so, but perhaps you should consider that KAT’s $65M would likely be replaced by 2-3 other players, possibly very good ones. If those players were, say, iHart and Norman Powell, I think we’d still be contenders. But the larger point is that MSG will still be packed at top dollar unless we become a non-playoff team.
FWIW Brunson is #1 American player.
I’m quietly obsessed with building the 2028 Team USA around Jalen Brunson. I want Brunson v Wemby in the gold medal game.
If we want a break from KAT angst, I find it an enjoyable pastime to build the optimal team of US players around him.
My favorite idea is pairing Brunson with Halliburton in the backcourt. I think that would be pure magic.
It gets hard when you get to Center, though. KAT’s ineligible because he plays for DR. Hartenstein is ineligible, too (Germany). The obvious choice was Chet Holmgren, but it would be a national embarrassment to watch him turtle against Wemby.
Tag team of Anthony Davis and Walker Kessler?
I usually end up with Chet & Bam at C, which is fine for every team except France. Against Wemby we go 5 out with Tatum at C.
My hope is Durant, the greatest international player ever, is still great in two years because he’d be perfect for the Wemby matchup, too, and you always like to have a legend who everyone looks up to (like Kobe on the Redeem Team).
OG’s in. And I like to include Amen Thompson and Cason Wallace because we could unleash holy hell with those three on defense.
For what it’s worth, probably very little, OG is described as a ‘British basketball player.’
And I did not know that Bam was from NJ.
OG is eligible for USA, Great Britain, and Nigeria.
That reminds me… we can select Embiid, too, if he still has knees in 2028.
Hate Brad Stevens for the obvious reason, but he nailed it when he said you can’t have 2 players taking 70% of space. Brown got his first, clear favourite Tatum due, Brown moved out. Take note KAT, as you being there first is not an advantage.
If i were Kat I’d go to JB and ask him if he wants me here and also how much money should i ask for.
I mean, surely these dudes understand the cap implications right and how that puts a cap on what teams can pay people if they want the teams to be contend? Dolan could go into the 2nd apron but no one else seems to want to do that either. So KAT gets his max with us or another team, neither team will be able to really win a title like that.
Same goes for JB, OG, Mikal, and Hart…by the way. Everyone will have to give a little if they want to keep this together. Cause even if we have this starting 5, reality is even the starting 5 can’t win it all without a good bench. Alvarardo and Shamet make pennies in comparison but both took a little less than they theoretically could have made somewhere else in order to stay here.
I’m with Hubs, though. This will get worked out.
weird situation…over at ma’s to say hi…she had some garbage disposal issue, next day she’s getting her kitchen pipes epoxied…
makes me a little concerned reference the aging stuff…folks doing the work here are pleasant and professional enough…still, worry is there…
seems the people closest to me don’t always wanna reach out when they have troubles, questions, concerns…heard a similar story from a close friend today…
don’t want to worry me, know i’m already not doing so well…falling down…just holding on…stuck in my house, stuck in bed…
some how, some way, got to figure out how to best demonstrate to those closest that I have the courage and strength to be there for them…no doubt working on fitness and faith will help, plan for out of home things…
consciously, subconsciously – you build a system, only to discover at times the flaws within…oh well…
Everyone loves bargains and raises just like everyone’s consciousness loves fairness.
Being able to understand that having the ability to be the highest paid player of your team doesn’t mean you should Do it no matter what, means a lot.
Especially if you’re Not The best player and there’s a salary cap pressing your teammates’ salaries too…
that’s so raven 😊
you know who I do think is a way worse defender than jalen brunson – luka doncic…
giannis most likely won’t play 65 games…may be ready for a few playoff games before either the heat get bounced in the first, or don’t make it through the play in…
bottom line, giannis can’t carry a team like our cap can…
love the cavs tied up 35% of their cap in mitchell…
don’t believe boston will be better with tatum (35% cap space) than brown…we shall see…
just how much “good press” do you think jalen received for his sacrificing some immediate financial reward for the betterment of his team…
seems a good bit…so yeah, the KAT’s family business in the future may very well be media related…
the situation he is in here seems – about as good as it could get…
probably not gonna make up that 40 to 50 million dollar discount…hopefully there’s a trade kicker, or whatever can be reasonably given, with the contract that helps ease a really large financial (short and long term) sacrifice…
do we win without KAT?
I don’t know man, his team keeps showing up in the conference finals…
yeah, i’d code him essential to a finals appearance…
jalen’s a mismatch for all teams, KAT’s a mismatch for most teams…
and OG might just be hitting his prime…he’s a really tough match up for everyone defensively, and now his offensive game is growing…
i’d pick him most likely to get traded out of all our starters…he’s really good, and he may not be up for doing any contract discounts…
probably way more than he deserves.
the mythology that’s developed around this decision doesn’t reflect what really happened.
Chet, Jalen Williams, and Wemby all left money on the table.
Jalen took everything that was on the table, got a 50% raise for the final year of his contract, and set himself up to maximize his career earnings.
And here’s the kicker — it never actually helped us build the team. It actually hurt us! Last year we would have been under the first apron.
But the legend is he left $100M on the table. Good for him.
KAT will probably have a terrible year this year and then will gleefully take his player option or maybe get a sane extension if Leon feels like it.
If we win another championship, then fuck it, we have to pay him. Either way, these guys won’t last forever. I’d rather get two pretty good years of KAT and say goodbye than 4 extra years of middling KAT.
PS — thanks for the props, Geo and Mike, means a lot.
Law Murray:
hey ess-dog, thanks for the courage to share…
liked mike’s words much better than my own…all I see is beauty, mike sees in to it in more detail…
not to pry, was wondering though:
– how difficult is it to let a piece go? art is just so personal…
– have you had the opportunity to watch others take in your work?
Low bar, but I think he’s better than James Wiseman FWIW.
Broome is definitely not better than Wiseman. And that’s saying a lot, because Wiseman sucks a whole lot.
Mitchell Robinson !!!
Doogie becoming the resident expert on 5th string centers has been a pleasant development.
It looks like there’s a roommates podcast party at Randall’s Island today, and there are like 300 fans in Knicks gear next to me at the ferry line (I’m not going, just taking the ferry home).
I’ll never get tired of this championship run.
can’t say you’re alone in your perspective…some analyst listed jalen’s placement at number 6 as a big miss…said statistically around mid 20’s in on court performance…
RIP Bob Pettit, one of the few legends from the ’50s who could probably translate to an all-star in today’s game. 6’9″, tough as nails, great scorer and rebounder. Had 50 and 19 against the Celtics in game 6 to win the Hawks’ only championship. It happened to be right around the day I was born.
i saw that and i was like “did this moron watch any of the postseason”…not even sure who that dude was that wrote the column…probably the only ball he ever played was nerf…
Of course if we sweep a playoff series, Hart can push the Broome around the floor…
I think Mike should do a poll with EB’s help as I’m surely not smart enough to help, but the question would be if you had made like $250 mil in your career to date and just won a championship, would you let them take whatever is a nice cut from your next contract and stay in a cold, tax-riddled state, or go for the max and go somewhere else? You the reader, not KAT.
big perk also not happy with the #6 rating
https://www.espn.com/video/clip/_/id/50022493
stats don’t measure heart…he had a similar thought about placing luka in front of jalen…
Loved the SNL promo for Jalen, only because he looked like an absolute giant next to Katseye and Marcelo.
Not sure how the episode will go. Not sensing comedic chops. But the stakes could not be lower.
Bob Pettit was an all time great. It angers me to no end when that fat bastard Windhorst makes fun of him.
I started watching basketball in 1960 when there were only 8 teams in the league and none west of the Mississippi. The Knick weren’t broadcast on WOR til the mid 60’s so we only got one NBA game televised weekly on Saturday afternoon.
Pettit played 11 seasons and was first team all NBA 10 times and second team once. In his day, only Russell and Wilt were considered better.
I can kind of see a high potential for jalen to lose it and start cracking up during his skits…
he should do well though with the monologue…
Bob Pettit, also a great choice in 82-0, since you can play him at PF.
I’m taking the over on Brunson’s comedic chops.
Brunson’s only the 5th NBA player to host SNL, and interestingly they form a perfect team:
PG Brunson
SG Jordan
SF LeBron
PF Barkley
C Russell
The sap that is Z-man is loving Ted Lasso season 4.
I love KAT and his fit on this team, but his next contract would be for ages 32-36. He’s at his peak and will probably stay there for 2-3 more years if he stays healthy. But how good will he be beyond 33?
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