12:40pm: The Knicks have confirmed all the roster moves detailed below and added that they’ve turned down their team option on Theo Pinson, whom they claimed off waivers in June. Pinson’s option had been worth $1.7MM, but he’ll become an unrestricted free agent instead of remaining with New York.
The team projects to enter free agency with upwards of $38-40MM in cap room.
12:06pm: The Knicks will waive Elfrid Payton and Kenny Wooten and have decided not to pick up Bobby Portis‘ option for next season, tweets Steve Popper of Newsday. In addition, the team won’t make a qualifying offer to Damyean Dotson, who becomes an unrestricted free agent.
New York will also waive veteran forward Taj Gibson, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link), and Wayne Ellington, tweets Marc Berman of The New York Post.
The decisions are designed to create cap flexibility, Popper adds (Twitter link). He notes that the team could opt to re-sign some of the players, but at lesser salaries than what they were scheduled to make (Twitter link).
Payton had a $1MM guarantee on his $8MM deal for next season. He started 36 of the 45 games he played last season, but the Knicks have indicated they want to find a new starting point guard. Gibson also had a $1MM guarantee on his $9.45MM contract, while Ellington receives $1MM of his $8MM deal. Wooten was on a two-way contract and didn’t appear in any NBA games.
The Knicks held a $15.75MM option for Portis, who averaged 10.1 points and 5.1 rebounds in 66 games last season, mostly as a reserve. Dotson, who got into 48 games off the bench and averaged 6.7 PPG, would have required a $2,023,150 QO.
Why didn’t Knicks trade the following 4 players $40 million for this season last night?
Randle
Smith Jr
Frank
Knox
A trade requires 2 parties…very basic stuff
Everyone is tradable
Danny Green, Ariza and Rubio were traded once a day
Any player can be traded average one time each day
Lebron is NOT getting traded if that is what your inplying…
Because people don’t want those bums
Because nobody was going to take those guys into their cap space, so the Knicks would have had to take back equal salary of roughly equally crappy players. Knox, in particular, has some potential to rehab his trade value, so it made no sense to trade him yesterday.
Because someone actually has to want to trade for them…
If those players aren’t good enough for the freaking Knicks, what makes you think any other team would want them? I say this as a Knicks fan, btw. Maybe there’s some small value in Knox or Randle (and I do mean small), but Frank and DSJ are utterly bereft of value.
Portis was a no brainer, but he is going to have a lot of teams calling. Payton will too.
Both will get much less money of course.
I would love to see him accept the mid-level exception and come to Philly, be the guy coming off the bench to spell Embiid and Harris.
Well there goes all our expiring contracts to trade. This means Westbrook ain’t coming, oh well. Great draft for us. Next up is FA. Woods, Gallinari maybe.
id love to see them dangle randle
someone has to want him, open up the four slot for obi
He’s gone bro. Obi is starting from day one. I’m sure they are working to move him. I just want them to sign Woods. Solidifies our bigs, and all young. Don’t know who. But they should be looking at SF shooter.
Doesn’t mean the Knicks couldn’t trade for Westbrook. In fact, Houston would prefer not to take any of those contracts that were expiring. Knicks have the cap room to still make it happen, though Westbrook wouldn’t be a good idea.
Knicks double pay crappy players last summer
Now they will do the same
It’s called Knicks November Madness!!!
I was hoping Dotson stayed.
agreed dotson makes sense to keep
even gibson maybe
but overall i like it. they need to clean house
Knicks, with these moves, should have about 40 mm of cap space. Time for Rose to show what he has. In the draft, he was a rookie. FA and use of cap space in trades should be in his wheelhouse.
Knicks to sign Westbrook to save them!!!!
The Knicks should have drafted Halliburton imo. Or Deni.
Toppin tops ’em.
I could be wrong. I don’t scout college ball the way I used to. I didn’t see any of the players we’re talking about actually play. Tyrese seems to have the potential to be like D’Angelo Russell but a little better on D and a little worse on O. Based on stats and body frame, Toppin reminds me most of Hawks John Collins. Deni sounds like hedo Turkoglu (who probably would’ve been more effective in today’s NBA rules).
I’m confident to now say the Knicks definitely shoulda drafted Haliburton
You need another team that sees value in the trade
sillivan is a bad basketball guy, thought you better then that. don’t u think they would’ve traded those guys if something came up in talks… Rose and Wes and company trying hard to fix the garbage Mills and Perry left over. give them some time and lets see what happens.
thank god your not a Dr… knicks has to trade for Westbrook not sign him… smh. are you boys with sillyman… sounds like it.