Knicks Notes: Cap Room, Second-Round Picks, Ellington

Teams around the NBA are under the impression that the Knicks remain open to providing cap relief to clubs looking to unload unwanted salary, writes Ian Begley of SNY.tv. New York already used its cap space to accommodate an Ed Davis salary dump, acquiring two second-round picks for taking his contract, then flipping him to Minnesota for another future second-rounder.

The Knicks still have at least $18MM in cap room, so they could absorb a more significant salary than Davis’ $5MM. However, there’s also no rush for New York to use up all that space now. Preserving their cap room into the season would make the Knicks a go-to-trade partner for teams looking to cut costs at the in-season deadline.

Here’s more on the Knicks:

  • In a separate SNY.tv article, Begley considers whether the Knicks could realistically help Charlotte dump Nicolas Batum‘s $27MM salary.
  • The two draft picks that the Knicks acquired from the Jazz in their Davis trade – initially reported as two 2023 second-rounders – will actually be second-round selections in 2023 and 2024, per RealGM’s breakdown of traded draft picks. New York received the Jazz’s own ’23 second-rounder and either Utah’s or Cleveland’s ’24 second-rounder (whichever is more favorable).
  • The Knicks will receive $559,528 in set-off on Wayne Ellington‘s $1MM dead-money cap hit as a result of his new deal with Detroit, as ESPN’s Bobby Marks explains (via Twitter). Although New York will save a little money, the set-off amount won’t change Ellington’s cap hit until after the season, so the club won’t open up any extra room.
  • Las Vegas’ Westgate Sportsbook has the Knicks projected to be one of the NBA’s worst teams in 2020/21, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post, who says the club’s over/under is 22.5 wins (in 72 games) and its title odds are 500-to-1. Both of those are tied for the lowest mark in the league, which isn’t a big surprise, given the Knicks’ relatively quiet offseason so far.
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