New York Knicks Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Fischer’s Latest: Kuminga, Bulls, Knicks, Bryant, Sixers, More

September 12th, 2025 at 4:12pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bulls are unlikely to emerge as a viable sign-and-trade suitor for Warriors restricted free agent Jonathan Kuminga after agreeing to re-sign their own RFA (Josh Giddey), according to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link). However, Fischer suggests that Chicago is worth keeping an eye on as a future landing spot for Kuminga, given that the Bulls project to have significant cap room beginning in 2026.

The fact that the Bulls and many other teams around the NBA should have cap space available next summer is one reason why Kuminga is “strongly considering” accepting his $8MM qualifying offer, which would allow him to hold an implicit no-trade clause for the coming season and reach unrestricted free agency in 2026, Fischer writes. While Kuminga’s preference would be to negotiate a longer-term deal, the Warriors haven’t yet seemed inclined to budge off their two-year, $45MM offer that includes a second-year team option.

Still, there’s a sense that a resolution on Kuminga might not be far off. Anthony Slater of ESPN said during an NBA Today appearance (YouTube link) that there have been “renewed efforts” this week to bridge the gap between the two sides, while Fischer says people connected to the negotiations believe there could be movement within the next week.

Here’s more from Fischer:

The Knicks weighed the possibility of signing free agent big man Thomas Bryant but ultimately decided to prioritize depth in the backcourt and on the wing, league sources tell Fischer. The team reached non-guaranteed deals this week with Malcolm Brogdon, Landry Shamet, and Garrison Mathews, who will each compete for a roster spot.
Following up on his report about Sixers veterans Andre Drummond and Kelly Oubre Jr. being on the trade block, Fischer clarifies that the front office doesn’t appear to be operating with any sort of “clear-cut directive” to move either player. Trading Drummond and/or Oubre without taking back any salary would help create a more favorable cap/tax situation as Philadelphia looks to re-sign restricted free agent Quentin Grimes.
The Kings‘ decision to waive Terence Davis, who had a non-guaranteed contract, likely signals that they don’t expect to need his outgoing salary for matching purposes in a trade before the season, Fischer observes. “The only reason for Sacramento to have kept Davis this long was to have potentially used him in a trade,” one league source told The Stein Line.
Celtics big man Luka Garza had hoped to suit up for Bosnia and Herzegovina at this year’s EuroBasket tournament but has yet to be cleared by FIBA, according to Fischer, who explains that Garza’s appeal will be heard after EuroBasket ends. If he gets clearance, Garza could represent Bosnia and Herzegovina at the 2027 World Cup.

Knicks Exploring Move To Shed Salary?

September 12th, 2025 at 11:41am CST by Luke Adams

Within the past 24 hours, the Knicks have reached contract agreements with Malcolm Brogdon, Landry Shamet, and Garrison Mathews, but they only have enough cap flexibility below the second tax apron to keep one of those three players on their regular season roster.

Shedding a little salary from the current roster would allow New York to retain more than one of those players for opening night, and multiple reports suggest the team is exploring that path.

Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (Twitter link) says people around the NBA expect the Knicks to make a move that would allow them to keep Brogdon and one of Shamet or Mathews. Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link), meanwhile, cites league sources who says the Knicks are weighing various trade scenarios to create extra cap flexibility.

While Bondy doesn’t single out a specific trade candidate, Fischer points to 2024 first-round pick Pacome Dadiet as one player who could be moved for cap reasons. Dadiet played sparingly in 18 games during his first NBA season and will make $2.85MM in 2025/26. His rookie scale contract includes team options for the following two years.

Second-year point guard Tyler Kolek could be another player to watch, especially if the Knicks are prioritizing keeping a veteran point guard like Brogdon. Like Dadiet, Kolek had a limited role as a rookie, logging 296 total minutes in 41 outings last season. He’s owed a guaranteed $2.19MM in 2025/26 and $2.3MM in ’26/27, with a team option for ’27/28.

Moving either Dadiet or Kolek without taking any salary back would allow New York to retain two veteran minimum-salary camp invitees instead of just one. However, because neither 2024 draftee has a significant cap hit, the Knicks would still have to sign a draft-rights-held rookie as their 14th man and wouldn’t have enough room under their hard cap to add a 15th man until much later in the season.

It’s worth noting that while the gap in salaries between Dadiet and Kolek isn’t massive, it figures to be an important consideration for the Knicks’ front office as the team weighs its options — trading Kolek, retaining two veteran free agent camp invitees, and signing a 14th man to a rookie minimum would leave New York a mere $44K below its hard cap.

Knicks To Sign Malcolm Brogdon

September 12th, 2025 at 8:04am CST by Luke Adams

The Knicks and free agent guard Malcolm Brogdon have reached an agreement on a one-year contract, agent Sam Permut tells Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).

While Charania doesn’t provide any additional details on the deal, Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link) confirms it’s non-guaranteed, giving Brogdon the opportunity to compete with Landry Shamet and Garrison Mathews for a regular season roster spot.

Due to limited flexibility below a second-apron hard cap, New York only has the ability to carry one of those minimum-salary veterans into the regular season unless the team sheds salary with a buyout or trade.

Brogdon, who will turn 33 in December, has been a reliable rotation guard since entering the NBA as a second-round pick in 2016. He won Rookie of the Year honors during his first of three seasons in Milwaukee (2016-19), spent three years with the Pacers (2019-22), then was named Sixth Man of the Year with Boston in 2023.

Brogdon was traded from the Celtics to the Trail Blazers in the Jrue Holiday blockbuster prior to the 2023/24 season and spent one year in Portland before being dealt to Washington during the 2024/25 offseason. He appeared in 24 games for the Wizards last season, averaging 12.7 points, 4.1 assists, and 3.8 rebounds in 23.5 minutes per contest.

Although he has solid career averages of 15.3 PPG, 4.7 APG, and 4.1 RPG on .463/.388/.874 shooting, Brogdon also an extensive injury history. Since seeing action in 75 games as a rookie, he has been sidelined for 249 of 637 regular season contests, appearing in more than 56 games in a season just twice in eight years. The former Virginia standout didn’t play after the All-Star break last season due to an ankle sprain.

The Knicks are currently carrying 12 players on guaranteed standard contracts. They have enough room below the second apron to carry one more player on a veteran’s minimum contract and one on a rookie minimum contract into the regular season. Both Brogdon and Shamet are expected to receive “strong” consideration for that veteran slot, per Begley, with Mathews also in the mix.

Brogdon, Shamet, and Mathews will all likely have Exhibit 9 language in their contracts, meaning they won’t count against the cap unless they make the regular season roster and the team will have protection in the event of a preseason injury.

Knicks Notes: Shamet, Mathews, PGs, Beasley, Jemison

September 12th, 2025 at 7:39am CST by Luke Adams

With 12 players on standard contracts, the Knicks only have enough room below their second-apron hard cap to carry one more player on a veteran’s minimum contract and one on a rookie minimum contract into the regular season. However, the team will have the ability to fill out its 21-man offseason roster because training camp deals that include Exhibit 9 language don’t count against the cap or the apron until the start of the regular season.

The Knicks agreed on Thursday to non-guaranteed deals with guards Landry Shamet and Garrison Mathews, who are expected to compete for that 13th spot on the roster. According to Stefan Bondy of The New York Post, Mathews considered at least one other offer before opting to sign with the Knicks and engage in a training camp battle with Shamet.

While Mathews will receive consideration for a regular season spot, Shamet should have the upper hand in that competition, per Ian Begley of SNY.tv, who notes that the 28-year-old wing earned “significant respect” within the organization last season for the way he recovered from a preseason shoulder injury and became a contributor in the second half and postseason. Shamet is also close with Knicks forward Mikal Bridges, who signed a four-year extension with the team last month, Bondy adds.

Here’s more on the Knicks:

Despite being right up against their hard cap, the Knicks remain on the lookout for a backup point guard, Bondy writes, observing that Malcolm Brogdon is among the notable options still on the market. It’s unclear if the club will bring a point guard or two to camp to compete with Shamet and Mathews, or if the front office is looking for a way to open up enough room below the second apron to carry another veteran into the season.
While Malik Beasley is among the players that have been on the Knicks’ radar, his legal situation made the team hesitant to sign him, Begley reports. Beasley is being investigated by the NBA due to gambling-related concerns and remains a subject in a federal probe into the same issue.
The Knicks are considering players outside the organization for their open two-way contract slots, according to Begley, who identifies free agent big man Trey Jemison as one of the players who has drawn interest from the club.
It appears as if Mike Brown‘s coaching staff for his first season in New York is set. Bondy indicates that Chris Jent, Brendan O’Connor, and Rick Brunson will Brown’s assistants on the front bench, while Darren Erman will move to the back bench.

Heat Notes: 2026, Rozier, Achiuwa, Settle, Young

September 11th, 2025 at 10:33pm CST by Luke Adams

While the idea of opening up cap room in 2026 was once a goal for the Heat, that’s no longer the case, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald, who notes that several potential marquee ’26 free agents have signed contract extensions that will keep them off the market.

The Heat still want to maintain flexibility going forward, but that will likely be more about having room below the luxury tax line than creating cap space, Jackson explains.

Outlining what it would look like for Miami to operate either over or under the 2026/27 cap, Jackson points out that generating a meaningful chunk of cap room would likely require the club to part ways with both Andrew Wiggins and Norman Powell. Operating over the cap appears to be the more “prudent” path for the Heat next summer, Jackson concludes.

Here’s more on the Heat:

After reporting earlier this week that the Heat have been in contact with Precious Achiuwa and have mulled the idea of waiving Terry Rozier, Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel (subscription required) digs a little deeper into that subject, exploring why Miami has considered that path. As Winderman details, Rozier is a potential bounce-back candidate and may be a better player than Achiuwa in a vacuum, but the veteran guard could also end up buried on a crowded backcourt depth chart, whereas the team has a more pressing need up front.
Although the Heat’s training camp won’t formally get underway until the week of September 29, several players are already back on the practice court at Kaseya Center for drills, Winderman writes within a look at the team’s roster. Winderman confirms in the same story that Miami – which currently has a full 21-man roster – is still expected to sign undrafted rookie free agent Steve Settle to an Exhibit 10 contract at some point before the regular season, as previously reported.
The Sioux Falls Skyforce, Miami’s G League affiliate, acquired Jahmir Young‘s returning rights from the Grand Rapids Gold in a three-team trade that sent Bryson Warren‘s rights to the Westchester Knicks and Moses Brown‘s rights to the Gold (the Nuggets‘ affiliate), per a press release. Young was one of four players who signed Exhibit 10 contracts with the Heat on Thursday, so if he’s waived before the season and then decides to play in the G League, the Skyforce would have his rights.

Knicks, Landry Shamet Agree To One-Year Contract

September 11th, 2025 at 3:39pm CST by Rory Maher

3:39pm: Shamet’s one-year deal with the Knicks is non-guaranteed and he will compete with Garrison Mathews for a roster spot, according to Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (Twitter link).

2:53pm: Free agent shooting guard Landry Shamet is returning to the Knicks on a one-year contract, agent George S. Langberg tells Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).

According to Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link), Shamet drew interest from other teams but he liked being part of New York’s locker room last season and wants to compete for a championship.

Shamet, who is entering his eighth NBA season, will earn $3,080,921 in 2025/26, while the Knicks will carry a cap charge of $2,296,274. We’ll have to wait and see if the contract is guaranteed — Shamet originally signed a non-guaranteed Exhibit 9 deal with New York last fall.

Shamet, 28, was the 26th overall pick of the 2018 draft after three college seasons at Wichita State. He spent time with the Sixers, Clippers, Nets, Suns and Wizards prior to signing with the Knicks in 2024.

Known for his shooting ability, Shamet appeared in 50 games last season after his season debut was delayed by a shoulder injury. He averaged career lows of 5.7 points and 1.2 rebounds in 15.2 minutes per game, though he did convert 39.7% of his three-point looks.

Once the signing is official, Shamet will be the 13th player under contract with the Knicks. All three of their two-way spots remain open, with Kevin McCullar Jr. still a two-way restricted free agent.

The Knicks are hard-capped at the second tax apron and don’t have enough room below that threshold to carry a full 15-man roster into the regular season. Given their proximity to their hard cap, the expectation is that their 13th man will be a veteran on a minimum-salary contract (like Shamet) and their 14th man will be a player whose draft rights they hold on a rookie minimum deal.

Garrison Mathews To Sign Camp Deal With Knicks

September 11th, 2025 at 3:19pm CST by Rory Maher

The Knicks intend to sign free agent guard Garrison Mathews to a training camp contract, reports Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (via Twitter). Mathews’ agent, David Bauman, confirmed the news to Bondy (Twitter link).

According to Bondy, Mathews will compete with Landry Shamet for a spot on New York’s regular season roster.

Nearly 85% of Mathews’ field goal attempts over the course of his career have come from behind the three-point line, and the former Lipscomb star has converted 38.2% of those outside looks. He also has a knack for drawing fouls on three-pointers.

Mathews, who turns 29 years old next month, has spent the past two-plus seasons with Atlanta. In 47 games last season, the 6’5″ shooting guard averaged 7.5 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists while knocking down 39.0% of his threes in 17.7 minutes per contest.

Mathews started his NBA career as a Wizard after going undrafted in 2019, spending two years with Washington. He also spent a year-and-a-half with Houston prior to being traded to the Hawks ahead of the 2023 trade deadline.

NBA Conducting Own Investigation Into Malik Beasley

September 10th, 2025 at 1:41pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA is conducting its own investigation into Malik Beasley related to allegations of improper gambling on games and prop bets, the league confirmed to ESPN’s David Purdum. Beasley is “fully cooperating” in that probe, attorney Steve Haney told ESPN.

Word broke in June, just ahead of his free agency, that the veteran sharpshooter was under investigation by the U.S. District Attorney’s office due to unusual betting activity on Beasley-related wagers during the 2023/24 season.

ESPN’s Shams Charania reported in August that Beasley is no longer a “target” in that investigation, though subsequent reports indicated that he’s still a “subject” of the investigation, meaning he’s not entirely in the clear.

As Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets, the NBA has the right to investigate a case and hand out its own penalty (e.g. a fine or suspension) unless a player is explicitly found not guilty in a court of law. So even if federal investigators don’t charge Beasley, that doesn’t necessarily mean he won’t face any punishment from the league, though presumably the findings in both investigations will be similar.

Investigators in the case are reportedly focused on unusually heavy betting activity on Beasley’s statistics in January 2024, including a Jan. 31 game in which action on his “under 2.5 rebounds” prop bet surged significantly in the hours leading up to tip-off — he ended up grabbing six rebounds in that game, meaning the bets deemed unusual lost.

The NBA’s investigation into Beasley is believed to be in its final stages, a source familiar with the situation tells Purdum. For what it’s worth, the 28-year-old wing recently published an Instagram post in which he stated that “my decision is near,” which may be a reference to a free agency decision.

Beasley and the Pistons were reportedly deep in talks on a three-year, $42MM deal before word of the federal investigation broke and Detroit pulled that offer. The Pistons no longer have the cap space or exceptions available to make that sort of offer for Beasley, but could go up to a starting salary of $7.2MM using his Non-Bird rights.

The Cavaliers, Knicks, and Timberwolves are among the other teams said to have registered interest in Beasley. He’s coming off a strong season in Detroit in which he was the Sixth Man of the Year runner-up after averaging 16.3 points per game and finishing second in the NBA in three-pointers made (319).

Atlantic Notes: Z. Williams, Simmons, Celtics, Sixers

September 10th, 2025 at 12:41pm CST by Luke Adams

Nets swingman Ziaire Williams waived his right to veto a trade as part of his new two-year contract agreement with the Nets, per Keith Smith of Spotrac (Twitter link).

A player who re-signs with his previous team on a one-year deal or a two-year deal that includes a second-year option is typically given an implicit no-trade clause, but a team can ask the player to give up that no-trade clause upon signing. Because Williams – whose contract features a second-year team option – agreed to do so, he would lose his Bird rights if he’s traded ahead of February’s deadline.

Brooklyn has been looking to maintain trade flexibility while re-signing its free agents to short-term deals — the team has gotten Williams and Day’Ron Sharpe to waive their trade veto rights and sought to get Cam Thomas to do the same. However, Thomas opted to accept his qualifying offer, taking a lesser 2025/26 salary in order to maintain full control over a potential trade.

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

Following up on reports indicating that Ben Simmons rebuffed interest from the Knicks and is no longer being represented by agent Bernie Lee, Stefan Bondy of The New York Post directly connects the two developments — a source tells Bondy that Lee dropped Simmons as a client after the former No. 1 overall pick “sent signals that he wasn’t interested in whatever came from his agent’s conversations with the Knicks.”
A panel of NBC Sports Boston staffers, including NBA insider Chris Forsberg, consider which of the Celtics‘ two-way players is most likely to help the team this season. The consensus is that big man Amari Williams, the 46th overall pick in June’s draft, has the clearest path to regular playing time, given the key frontcourt players Boston lost this offseason.
Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer (subscription required) explores some burning roster-related questions facing the Sixers ahead of the 2025/26 season. Outside of the obvious uncertainty related to Joel Embiid‘s and Paul George‘s availability, Mizell considers what the backcourt rotation will look like and how the team will replace Guerschon Yabusele‘s production following his departure in free agency.

Knicks Expected To Hire Billy Lange

September 10th, 2025 at 11:04am CST by Luke Adams

Former Sixers assistant Billy Lange is expected to leave his position as the men’s basketball head coach at Saint Joseph’s University in order to take a job on the Knicks‘ staff, according to Pete Thamel, Jeff Borzello, and Tim Bontemps of ESPN (Twitter link).

A New Jersey native, Lange has been coaching since 1996, primarily in the college ranks. After taking a series of jobs at smaller programs, he joined Villanova as an assistant from 2001-04 under Jay Wright, was Navy’s head coach from 2004-11, then rejoined Villanova as Wright’s associate head coach from 2011-13.

Lange subsequently made the leap to the NBA, working as an assistant on Brett Brown‘s coaching staff in Philadelphia from 2013-19. He returned to the NCAA in 2019 as the head coach at St. Joe’s and has spent the past six seasons in that role.

According to Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link), the expectation is that Lange will oversee the Knicks’ player development program. He served in a similar role during his time with the 76ers in addition to being involved in Philadelphia’s offense.

The Knicks have made a handful of changes to their coaching staff since bringing in Mike Brown to replace former head coach Tom Thibodeau. New assistants Chris Jent and Brendan O’Connor are expected to run the offense and defense, respectively, while New York is also bringing in former Birmingham Squadron head coach T.J. Saint.

Additionally, the Knicks are retaining several coaches from Thibodeau’s staff, including Rick Brunson and Maurice Cheeks, and are adding Charles Allen and Riccardo Fois, a pair of player development assistants who worked under Brown in Sacramento.