New York Knicks Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Knicks Notes: Hart, Robinson, Towns, Brown, Yabusele

October 21st, 2025 at 9:29pm CST by Dana Gauruder

One of the issues regarding the Knicks this preseason was whether new coach Mike Brown would choose Mitchell Robinson or Josh Hart as the team’s fifth starter. As it turns out, neither will play in the season opener against Cleveland on Wednesday. They’re listed as out on the official injury report and another starter, Karl-Anthony Towns, is questionable due to a strained right quad, Steve Popper of Newsday tweets.

Hart is dealing with lumbar spasms, according to Jared Schwartz of the New York Post. In terms of the oft-injured Robinson, it’s essentially left ankle injury management.

“With Mitch, we just have to be smart,” Brown said. “That’s part of load management. Just because he might be able to play tonight, he might be able to practice today, that doesn’t necessarily mean I’m gonna play him or I’m gonna practice him.”

Here’s more on the Knicks:

Brown has been tasked to bring the Knicks a long-awaited championship. He says they can’t skip any steps along the way, Schwartz writes. “The good part about it is, the Finals or the championship round doesn’t happen until June,” Brown said. “We’ve got a long time to get there. It starts on the daily. We can’t skip any steps. We just wanna keep taking steps, because it’s gonna be a process. Knowing that we might take one or two steps backwards, but hopefully we can regroup and continue to take three, four, five more forward.”
Towns isn’t entirely sure how his skill set fits into Brown’s offensive schemes, which are more uptempo with a heavier emphasis on movement compared to Tom Thibodeau’s methodic system. “Honestly, I don’t know, but we’re figuring it out. It’s just different,” Towns told Kristian Winfield of the New York Daily News. Brown is confident Towns will adjust. “First thing is, it’s going to be a process, especially with him missing the last couple of games,” he said. “He’ll be in the strong corner, he’ll be in the weak corner, he can be the push man, or he can be the weak wing, and also he can be at the top of the key and in the dunker. That will help him, the movement.”
Guerschon Yabusele has tipped the scales after signing a two-year contract as a free agent, according to Zach Braziller of the New York Post. The new Knicks forward weighs in at 283 pounds, 18 pounds more than last season with the Sixers. “I did not ask him to put on weight or take off weight,” Brown said. “That’s something that our performance people talk to him about.”

Stein’s Latest: Connaughton, Knicks, Mazzulla, Curry, Mavs

October 20th, 2025 at 11:05pm CST by Rory Maher

Charlotte’s decision to release Spencer Dinwiddie — after signing the veteran guard to a guaranteed minimum-salary contract over the summer — surprised some people around the NBA, according to Marc Stein of The Stein Line (Substack link).

There was some speculation that the Hornets might waive Pat Connaughton instead, but Stein hears the team decided to keep the veteran wing because he’s popular in the locker room and has championship experience. Another key factor: the Hornets remain cautiously optimistic they might be able to use Connaughton’s $9.4MM expiring contract in a trade before February’s deadline, Stein writes.

Here’s more from Stein:

The Knicks attempted to speak to several employed head coaches when they were looking for a replacement for Tom Thibodeau, but all of their formal requests were denied. According to Stein, there have been rumblings that New York also informally explored the possibility of trying to pursue Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla, which obviously went nowhere — a month after the Knicks hired Mike Brown, Mazzulla signed an extension with Boston. While the Celtics vaguely referred to Mazzulla’s agreement as a multiyear extension, Stein hears the 37-year-old likely received a six-year contract.
There’s zero doubt that the Warriors will eventually re-sign Seth Curry — the only question is when, says Stein. While Golden State could technically bring Curry back on November 11, waiting a bit beyond that date would give the Warriors more breathing room below their second apron hard cap, and they are believed to be considering that path, per Stein.
The Mavericks waived NBA veterans Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Dalano Banton and Dennis Smith Jr. on Friday. Their G League affiliate — the Texas Legends — controls the returning rights of Robinson-Earl and Banton, and Dallas expects both players to open the season with the Legends, according to Stein. The Mavs are also optimistic that Smith with play for the Legends, but Stein points out that the former lottery pick’s rights are currently held by the Wisconsin Herd — an NBGL trade between Wisconsin and Texas would need to occur for that to happen. Banton was on an Exhibit 10 deal with the Mavs (Robinson-Earl and Smith were on Exhibit 9s), so he’s the only player of the group who will receive a bonus if he spends at least 60 days with the Legends.

Injury Notes: Trail Blazers, Knicks, Heat, Pelicans

October 20th, 2025 at 9:00pm CST by Rory Maher

While he’s not sure who will be ready for Wednesday’s season opener against Minnesota, head coach Chauncey Billups said Toumani Camara (knee), Deni Avdija (back), Robert Williams (knee) and Matisse Thybulle (knee) were full participants in Monday’s practice, tweets Sean Highkin of The Rose Garden Report.

Williams, who has been plagued by knee issues throughout his career, was limited to just 20 games last season. He didn’t play at all during the preseason, nor did Thybulle, who appeared in just 15 games last season due to knee and ankle issues.

Camara, the recipient of a new four-year, $81MM extension, appeared in two preseason games, while Avdija played in all four but exited the finale with upper back stiffness.

We have more injury updates from around the NBA:

The Knicks may be without a pair of key rotation players for their regular season opener vs. Cleveland, writes Zach Braziller of The New York Post. Josh Hart (back spasms) and Mitchell Robinson (load management) didn’t practice Monday, and head coach Mike Brown isn’t sure if either player will be available Wednesday. “Everything we’re doing with him is about managing his workload, which we’ll do the whole year,” Brown replied when asked if there is an injury for Robinson.
Rookie guard Kasparas Jakucionis (right groin strain) and second-year Kel’el Ware (neck spasms) were unable to practice Monday for the Heat, per Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (Twitter link). Ware is being evaluated by a doctor, Chiang adds. Miami’s regular season begins Wednesday in Orlando.
Lottery pick Derik Queen went through a full practice Saturday for the first time since undergoing left wrist surgery in July. While the Pelicans big man thinks he could play in Wednesday’s opener at Memphis, head coach Willie Green was careful to temper expectations after a lengthy layoff, writes Jim Eichenhofer of Pelicans.com. “We’ve got to listen to how his body is responding,” Green said. “This is his first time playing with contact in a few months. We don’t want to rush. If he’s ready, that’s another conversation that we’ll have.” Second-year center Karlo Matkovic was unable to practice Saturday due to an elbow injury the team continues to evaluate, Green added.

Knicks Notes: Brown, Dadiet, Kolek, Robinson

October 20th, 2025 at 8:01am CST by Arthur Hill

Young players like Pacome Dadiet and Tyler Kolek knew there wasn’t much chance they’d see significant minutes under Tom Thibodeau, but that’s changed now that Mike Brown is running the Knicks, writes Kristian Winfield of The New York Daily News. Brown prefers a larger rotation than Thibodeau, who was notorious for leaning on his starters, and the new coach has a reputation for giving opportunities to unproven talent.

It began with New York’s first preseason game in Abu Dhabi, Winfield notes, as Dadiet found himself in the starting lineup due to a hand sprain that sidelined OG Anunoby. It’s a philosophy Brown picked up while serving as an assistant to Steve Kerr, who regularly would insert end-of-the-bench players into a game without prior notice.

“If you look at what I’ve done, it’s usually nine-and-a-half to 10 guys,” Brown said. “I try to play as many as I can. Even in (Sacramento), when we had an injury, I started a two-way guy in Keon Ellis. So I’m going to play whoever helps us win and try to get guys an opportunity. With how deep our roster is, everybody should get one at some point.”

Dadiet still could spend time in the G League as long as the Knicks stay relatively healthy, but the team may need Kolek to step into the backup point guard role right away following Malcolm Brogdon‘s unexpected retirement. Kolek fits Brown’s up-tempo style, and he delivered 20 points and six assists last Monday in a game where the starters rested.

“There’s urgency every single day,” Kolek said. “They say the hardest thing is not to get in this league — it’s to stay in it. You’re fighting and scrapping for yours while keeping a collective goal as a team. Every day you’re working on your game to put yourself in the best position.”

There’s more from New York:

Brown’s plan to play faster got off to a rough start in the preseason as the Knicks ranked 29th in pace with 98.55 possessions per 48 minutes, notes Jared Schwartz of The New York Post. Brown attributes that to having so many players missing time with injuries. “The guys that have been out, they’re the key pieces to what we’re trying to do,” he said. “They haven’t gotten the reps and for us to jell together from top to bottom is gonna take a little more time than I thought.”
Mitchell Robinson missed most of last season while recovering from ankle surgery, so the Knicks have been cautious with him since training camp opened, per Zach Braziller of The New York Post. Robinson was a healthy scratch for the preseason finale at the behest of Casey Smith, who runs the team’s performance group. Brown added that he’s not aware if there’s a specific plan for how often Robinson will be available during the season.
James L. Edwards of The Athletic offers predictions for how the rotation will play out now that the final roster cuts have been made.

Knicks Waive Garrison Mathews, Alex Len, Matt Ryan

October 18th, 2025 at 4:30pm CST by Arthur Hill

As expected, veteran guard Garrison Mathews was cut by the Knicks, the team announced (via Twitter). New York has also waived Alex Len and Matt Ryan.

Mathews signed a non-guaranteed contract last month, as did Malcolm Brogdon and Landry Shamet, with the understanding that the team was only able to keep one of them due to financial limitations. Brogdon announced his retirement on Wednesday, so Shamet appears to have earned the roster spot.

A report on Friday stated that Mathews has been impressive since training camp opened, but the Knicks didn’t have the ability to fit two veteran salaries on their roster without trading someone away. Shamet played for New York last season and was considered the front-runner to make the team.

The report also states that Mathews is likely to draw interest from teams that need outside shooting help now that he’s on waivers. He has been with three teams in his six NBA seasons and shot 39% from three-point range with Atlanta last season.

Len and Ryan both signed with the Knicks in mid-September, with Len getting an Exhibit 9 contract and Ryan receiving an Exhibit 10 deal. Both were considered long shots to make the team, but Ryan may wind up with New York’s G League affiliate.

It looks like the last available roster spot will go to rookie small forward Mohamed Diawara, who was selected with the 51st pick in this year’s draft. That had been expected due to the Knicks’ cap limitations — Diawara’s rookie minimum salary will allow the team to remain below their hard cap.

With Shamet and Diawara filling the 13th and 14th spots on New York’s roster, the team will have to wait until early April to add a 15th man, unless it makes a cost-cutting trade before then.

Knicks To Waive Garrison Mathews; Nets Sign Hunter Cattoor

October 17th, 2025 at 11:35pm CST by Rory Maher

The Knicks plan to cut Garrison Mathews at some point before Saturday’s waiver deadline, reports Ian Begley of SNY.tv (via Twitter).

Stefan Bondy of The New York Post confirms the news (Twitter link).

According to Begley, the Knicks were happy with how Mathews performed in training camp and preseason but opted not to retain the sharpshooter due to their financial situation. New York is hard-capped at the second apron and — barring a cost-cutting trade, which appears unlikely in the short term after Malcolm Brogdon‘s sudden retirement — is only able to keep one veteran on a minimum-salary camp deal.

Landry Shamet has long been viewed as the frontrunner to fill that position and looks like an even stronger bet to stay with the Knicks after they decided to cut Mathews.

Begley hears Mathews, a six-year veteran who spent the past two-plus seasons with the Hawks, is expected to draw interest from rival teams that are looking for outside shooting.

The Nets also made a transaction tonight, officially signing Hunter Cattoor, as Brian Lewis of The New York Post relays (via Twitter).

A 6’3″ guard, Cattoor played five college seasons for Virginia Tech prior to going undrafted in 2024. The 24-year-old spent last season with BCM Gravelines-Dunkerque in France’s top basketball league, averaging 8.5 points while shooting 37.2% from long distance in 25 games.

Cattoor most recently suited up for the Cleveland’s Summer League team in Las Vegas.

New York Notes: Kolek, Yabusele, Thomas, Powell

October 17th, 2025 at 2:33pm CST by Luke Adams

In the wake of Malcolm Brogdon‘s sudden retirement announcement, the Knicks are weighing their options for the backup point guard position behind Jalen Brunson.

In the view of Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (subscription required), the team has three options: Trade for a backup, give second-year guard Tyler Kolek a chance to earn a rotation role, or take a committee approach, with Miles McBride, Jordan Clarkson, Josh Hart, and Mikal Bridges all taking on additional ball-handling responsibilities.

For his part, Brunson doesn’t sound like someone who wants the front office to go out and make a trade to fortify the depth at his position. He expressed confidence in the team’s in-house options, according to Peter Botte of The New York Post.

“We’re in good hands, great hands,” Brunson said on Thursday. “[Kolek] has been getting better every day. Deuce has been getting better every day. Those guys, they come in and they work on their game nonstop. When you see that, you have the utmost confidence that when their number is called they’re going to be ready to go. So like I said, we’re in good hands.”

Head coach Mike Brown also made it clear he’s not particularly concerned about how the Knicks will get by when Brunson is off the court.

“We feel like we have a deep roster, and a lot of guys will have an opportunity to grab whatever minutes might have been there or might not have been there,” Brown said, per Botte. “It’s just a case of earning your stripes, and we’ll figure it out at the end of the day, whoever’s gonna get whatever minutes are available.”

Here are a few more notes on the NBA’s two New York teams:

It hasn’t been an especially memorable preseason for Knicks forward/center Guerschon Yabusele, who has scored just seven points on 3-of-13 shooting in 42 total minutes of action through three games. As Bondy writes for The New York Post, Brown and the Knicks recognize that there will be a “learning curve” for the newcomer as he adjusts to both a new team and a new system. “I’m really trying to be as much as I can be focused to try to get every detail to make sure I’m at the right spot,” Yabusele said. “For me, it’s a new team with new guys so I really try to fit into the system and be a solution, not a problem.”
Brown has expressed a desire to treat Friday’s preseason finale as a dress rehearsal for the season and use his “normal rotation” for the game. However, four key Knicks – Hart (back), OG Anunoby (ankle), Karl-Anthony Towns (quad), and Mitchell Robinson (load management) – are considered day-to-day and may not be in position to play big minutes, if they’re available at all, writes Kristian Winfield of The New York Daily News (subscription required).
Given the make-up of the Nets‘ roster, it’s safe to assume Cam Thomas will do plenty of shooting and scoring in 2025/26. Still, head coach Jordi Fernandez is pushing Thomas to take advantage of the defensive attention he’ll receive by improving his play-making and creating shots for teammates, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post. “Yeah, me and Jordi always talk about it, we always have conversations about it,” Thomas said. “Jordi is also very understanding of who I am as a player. He knows I’m a scorer and he knows how I play. But it’s also the fine line of being aggressive, get your own shot and then getting guys other shots. We always have that dialogue, and it’s great. So this year we have a better understanding. He has a better understanding of me, and I have a better understanding of what he wants.”
Nets rookie Drake Powell‘s 13.8% usage rate during his first and only season at UNC was the lowest of any wing ever drafted, per The Athletic, but Fernandez isn’t concerned at all about that, writes Lewis. “I wasn’t there [at UNC], and I cannot judge whether it’s positive or negative,” the Nets’ head coach said. “But I see [Powell] as an elite on-ball defender, as probably the best athlete of this draft, a player that can run a play on the second side, a very good ball-handler. … He’s going to have to take advantage of his minutes. If he starts with [an] opportunity, great. If not, the opportunity will come.”

Extension Rumors: Herro, Heat, Porzingis, Daniels, M. Robinson

October 17th, 2025 at 11:34am CST by Luke Adams

Although All-Star guard Tyler Herro has expressed interest in signing a contract extension with the Heat before the regular season begins, there haven’t been substantive discussions to this point, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, who hears from sources that a preseason deal is doubtful.

Because Herro has two guaranteed seasons left on his current contract, he wouldn’t be eligible to sign an extension during the season. If he and Heat don’t work out an agreement on or before Monday, his next window to sign a new deal would be during the 2026 offseason.

Norman Powell and Andrew Wiggins are also extension-eligible, but a long-term deal for either player appears unlikely in the short term, Windhorst writes.

As ESPN’s Tim Bontemps observes within the same story, the Heat are one of a handful of teams looking to maximize their cap flexibility for the summer of 2027, which is when several stars – including Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Donovan Mitchell – are currently projected to reach free agency. That doesn’t necessarily mean a player like Herro or Powell won’t sign an extension sooner or later, but Miami may be reluctant to sacrifice 2027 cap room until they have “good reason” to, Bontemps explains.

Here are a few more notes and rumors on potential extension candidates:

There’s mutual interest between the Hawks and Kristaps Porzingis in a new contract, but the two sides are comfortable waiting to see how the season plays out, says Windhorst. That lines up with recent public comments from Porzingis on the subject. Both Porzingis and Trae Young are expected to have to wait on potential extensions, though Young would ideally like to replace his $49MM player option for 2026/27 with a lucrative new deal sooner or later, per Windhorst.
The Hawks are negotiating with rookie scale extension candidate Dyson Daniels ahead of Monday’s deadline, Bontemps confirms. ESPN’s Bobby Marks suggested earlier this week that Daniels’ agent, Daniel Moldovan, is using Jalen Suggs‘ five-year, $150MM as the key point of comparison for his client. Daniels’ teammate Jalen Johnson signed an identical extension last fall.
The Knicks and Mitchell Robinson have spoken about a possible extension, but haven’t gained any real traction, sources tell Windhorst. According to Windhorst, there’s also no urgency for the Knicks and Karl-Anthony Towns to work out a new contract — he’s extension-eligible, but has two guaranteed years and a player option left on his current deal.
Marks and Bontemps took a closer look at several of the remaining rookie scale extension candidates, speculating about what fair contracts might look like and predicting which ones will get done.

Knicks Sign, Waive Romeo Langford, Adama Bal, Ibrahima Diallo

October 16th, 2025 at 10:30pm CST by Rory Maher

The Knicks continue to make changes at the back end of their offseason roster, announcing in a series of press releases that they have signed and waived Romeo Langford, Adama Bal and Ibrahima Diallo (Twitter links for each transaction here).

All three received Exhibit 10 deals, making each player eligible for a bonus (worth up to $85,300) on top of his G League salary if he spends at least 60 days with the Westchester Knicks.

Langford, a 6’5″ wing who turns 26 years old next week, holds four years of NBA experience, having been selected 14th overall in the 2019 draft. However, he has been out of the league for the past two seasons, last suiting up for the Spurs during the 2022/23 campaign.

Langford spent the 2023/24 season in the NBAGL with the Salt Lake City Stars, averaging 10.2 PPG, 3.8 RPG and 1.7 APG on .462/.371/.697 shooting in 30 games (26.9 MPG). He had a brief stint last fall with BCM Gravelines-Dunkerque, but mutually agreed to part ways with the French club in late November and hasn’t been on a team since then.

French guard Bal played a minor role for Arizona for two years prior to transferring to Santa Clara ahead of the ’23/24 campaign. He was a full-time starter for the Broncos over the past two seasons, averaging 13.7 PPG, 3.1 APG and 2.9 RPG on .426/.366/.808 shooting in 60 games over that span (3o.7 MPG).

Bal went undrafted in June, making him an unrestricted free agent.

Diallo, who is from Senegal, played five college seasons with three different schools, the last of which was UCF in ’23/24. He wasn’t selected in last year’s NBA draft but was picked 13th overall by the Austin Spurs in the G League draft last fall. The 25-year-old big man appeared in 32 regular season games with Austin, averaging 5.3 PPG, 6.1 RPG and 2.1 BPG in 19.4 MPG.

Knicks Sign, Waive Donovan Williams, Isaiah Roby

October 16th, 2025 at 7:56pm CST by Rory Maher

The Knicks signed Donovan Williams to an Exhibit 10 contract on Thursday evening and subsequently waived him a little over an hour later (all Twitter links from the team).

Williams, who is now eligible for a bonus worth up to $85,300 if he spends at least 60 days with the Westchester Knicks, spent part of 2022/23 on a two-way contract with the Hawks, but has otherwise spent the past three seasons playing in the G League, Canada and China.

A 6’6″ wing, Williams appeared in 35 total games (30.3 minutes per contest) for Westchester last season, averaging 17.8 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.0 assists on .465/.382/.744 shooting. The 24-year-old, whose agreement with the Knicks was first reported at the beginning of October, also had recent stints with the Shanghai Sharks of the Chinese Basketball Association and the Scarborough Shooting Stars of the Canadian Elite Basketball League.

To make room on their offseason roster for Williams, the Knicks waived veteran guard Malcolm Brogdon, who surprisingly announced his retirement on Wednesday despite reportedly being on track to make New York’s regular season roster. The former Rookie of the Year (2017) and Sixth Man of the Year (2023) winner was on a non-guaranteed Exhibit 9 deal for training camp.

The Knicks have also signed and waived former second-round pick Isaiah Roby, per the team (Twitter links). As with Williams, Roby is likely headed back to Westchester after spending last season in Germany with Ratiopharm Ulm.

A 6’8″ power forward who has also been used as a small-ball center, Roby averaged 13.6 points, 8.1 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.7 blocks on .457/.375/.633 shooting in 26 games with Weschester during the ’23/24 campaign.

Roby, 27, has made 151 career NBA appearances over four total seasons with the Thunder and Spurs (18.9 MPG), averaging 7.7 PPG and 4.4 RPG on .485/.351/.675 shooting. He signed with the Knicks at the end of the ’22/23 season, but didn’t appear in any games for New York.