Scotto’s Latest: Alexander-Walker, Richards, Capela, Kennard, Shamet
Echoing multiple reports, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype confirms that the Hawks and Pistons are considered to be the front-runners for Timberwolves guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker, but he lists other contenders as well. League sources tell Scotto that the Clippers and Raptors remain in pursuit of Alexander-Walker along with other teams. He adds that the Magic were also interested before trading for Desmond Bane.
Toronto may be a surprise considering its position near the bottom of the standings this year, but the Raptors are reportedly determined to make a quick turnaround. Scotto notes that Alexander-Walker is a Toronto native and the franchise has a history of bringing in Canadian players, with four on the roster this season.
Scotto talked with several executives around the league who expect Alexander-Walker to sign for at least the $14.1MM non-taxpayer mid-level exception. League sources told Scotto they don’t expect him to return to the Wolves after they reached new deals with Naz Reid and Julius Randle.
Scotto shares more rumors as the start of free agency draws near:
- Center Nick Richards appears to be a trade candidate after the Suns drafted Khaman Maluach and agreed to acquire Mark Williams from Charlotte. Richards’ $5MM contract for next season became fully guaranteed on Sunday, and Scotto hears from league sources that the Knicks, Pacers and Lakers are among the teams with interest.
- Clint Capela isn’t expected to return to the Hawks in the wake of the Kristaps Porzingis deal, and Scotto lists the Clippers, Lakers and Spurs as teams to watch for the free agent center.
- Sources tell Scotto that Luke Kennard is likely to move on from the Grizzlies. The 29-year-old guard is one of the league’s top three-point shooters.
- The Knicks would like to keep free agent guard Landry Shamet, but he’s being eyed by several contending teams, Scotto adds.
Knicks Exercising Hukporti’s Option, Declining Tucker’s
The Knicks are exercising their 2025/26 team option on Ariel Hukporti, but are declining their option on P.J. Tucker, league sources tell Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link).
Hukporti’s option is worth just under $2MM and his salary for next season will remain non-guaranteed. Tucker’s was worth about $3.5MM and also would have been non-guaranteed had it been exercised.
According to Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (Twitter link), the Knicks are also issuing a two-way qualifying offer to Kevin McCullar, making him a restricted free agent.
A 23-year-old center from Germany, Hukporti was the 58th pick of last year’s draft. He battled injuries during his rookie season, appearing in 25 regular season games with averages of 1.9 points and 2.0 rebounds in 8.7 minutes per contest.
Although he barely played for New York after signing at the end of last season and is now 40 years old, it’s technically possible that Tucker could re-sign with the Knicks on a new non-guaranteed contract for the veteran’s minimum. That would substantially lower his cap hit and actually pay him a little more money while maintaining roster flexibility for the Knicks, who reportedly valued Tucker’s leadership in the locker room.
McCullar was also a second-round pick last year, having been selected No. 56 overall. He was injured to open his rookie campaign and only made four NBA appearances for a total of 29 minutes, with the majority of that playing time coming in the regular season finale.
Atlantic Notes: Nets Draft, Celtics, Knicks, Broome
The Nets‘ draft left fans with more questions than answers after they spent an NBA record five first-round picks in the same class, with the talents of some selections overlapping. Still, as Lucas Kaplan of NetsDaily writes, one thing is for certain: the Nets made sure to value what they saw as high-character players during this process.
“I loved just how hard a worker he is,” general manager Sean Marks said of No. 8 overall pick Egor Demin. “I saw him up close and personal in his individual workouts and other workouts that we had here with the group, and was able to compare what we saw during the season to what we saw now, and the uptick and the improvement that we saw was pretty outstanding. So I know he’s a class act of a young man, but he’s also a real worker, and that’s exciting for me, when the guy’s going to put in the due diligence.”
Brooklyn’s brass didn’t see the class as overlapping as much as outsiders did. In particular, Marks expressed that Demin and No. 19 overall pick Nolan Traore could coexist.
“I think we’d love to see both of them play together, for sure,” Marks said of Demin and Traore. “I think we always look at it a little bit of best player available at that particular time … But, you know, I think we’ve got to be very careful penciling a player into being a certain position, or playing a certain way when they’re 19 years old.”
In a subscriber-only story covering similar ground, Brian Lewis of The New York Post describes Marks’ type as quick-processing, ball-moving play-makers.
“Where we’re going with this is, we’re trying to find a brand of basketball that not only we think translates to a competitive brand out there and it’s going to fit with the Brooklyn community,” Marks said, “But it’s also where the NBA is going: guys who can play multiple positions, guard multiple positions and make it hard on the defense.”
We have more from the Atlantic Division:
- The Celtics elected to trade back from No. 32 in the draft to obtain the Nos. 46 and 57 selections as well as two future second-round picks. “All the time we’re looking for the ability to get more assets in the future and still get a bunch of good players,” vice president of basketball operations Mike Zarren said in explaining the decision, per MassLive’s Brian Robb. “We felt pretty confident that there’d be guys we liked lower in the draft and we had the ability to add a couple of really good future draft picks in addition to getting those guys. So, that’s what we did.”
- While there is still uncertainty about where the Knicks stand in their head coaching search, Ian Begley of SNY reports Mike Brown made a strong impression and has garnered internal support. In the same story, Begley explores where the Knicks standing entering free agency, noting that they’ll have the taxpayer mid-level exception worth up to $5.7MM to offer free agents, as well as the veteran’s minimum.
- By using a second-round pick to draft Johni Broome out of Auburn, the Sixers made a bet on a player who has been exceptional at every level of basketball he’s played, and one who should be a strong culture fit in Philadelphia, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes (subscriber link). “I would say my will to win and hating to lose,” Broome said of his biggest strength. “When you hate losing, you do whatever it takes. … If that’s owning up to your mistake or calling out one of your teammates’ mistakes, I think that’s what helps winning, when everybody’s bought in and everybody’s on the same page of wanting to win. I think that’s just where it comes from.”
And-Ones: 2025 Draft Grades, 2026 Class, France, Gabriel
Five teams earned ‘A’ grades on Sam Vecenie’s post-draft report card for The Athletic, including four teams who had picks in the top six. The fifth team to earn an A was the Hawks, primarily for landing an unprotected 2026 first-round pick from the Pelicans to drop 10 spots in the middle of the first round.
Another 18 teams earned ‘B-‘ to ‘B+’ grades, meaning they mostly met or exceeded the value expected at their respective draft slots. Multiple clubs who only had second-round picks, like the Cavaliers and Warriors, found themselves in this tier. A few teams who ended up landing players who slid from pre-draft projections also ended up in this group, with the Jazz getting Ace Bailey at No. 5, the Heat landing Kasparas Jakucionis at No. 20 and the Thunder getting Thomas Sorber at No. 15.
That left five teams to earn a mark of ‘C’ or lower from Vecenie (Houston and Denver did not make any selections). The Pelicans were marked down for the haul they gave up to move up from No. 23 to No. 13 and select Derik Queen. The Nets were questioned for making three selections – Egor Demin, Nolan Traore and Ben Saraf – with positional overlap, while the Knicks earned a middling grade for selecting a stash player who may not make it to the league.
We have more from around the basketball world:
- The 2026 draft looks to be loaded on paper, with a strong blend of returners who would have been drafted this year and high-level incoming talent. In ESPN’s first full 2026 mock draft, Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo have Darryn Peterson of Kansas as the No. 1 overall pick. A.J. Dybantsa (BYU), Cameron Boozer (Duke), Nate Ament (Tennessee) and Mikel Brown Jr. (Louisville) round out their top five. Among returning college players, Jayden Quaintance (No. 6, Kentucky) and Yaxel Lendeborg (No. 14, Michigan) are the highest-ranking.
- Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report‘s top three looks identical to ESPN’s, but he has Arizona’s Koa Peat at No. 4 in his first 2026 mock draft. Another significant difference between the two boards is Baylor wing Tounde Yessoufou‘s spot — Wasserman has him at No. 6, but ESPN places him at No. 23.
- France has named its 18-man preliminary roster for EuroBasket 2025, per the team (Twitter link). Bilal Coulibaly, Moussa Diabate, Ousmane Dieng, Zaccharie Risacher, Alex Sarr and Guerschon Yabusele are the current NBA players on the roster. Former NBAers on the team include Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, Frank Ntilikina and Theo Maledon, among others.
- Former NBA player Wenyen Gabriel is leaving Panathinaikos to sign with Bayern Munich in Germany, according to Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews. Gabriel played his first EuroLeague season in 2024/25, averaging 6.0 points per game, and will remain in the league by signing with Bayern. The 6’9″ big man played 150 NBA games from 2019-24 across stints with the Lakers, Pelicans, Trail Blazers, Kings and others. He averaged 4.4 PPG and 3.4 RPG for his career.
Knicks To Sign Dink Pate
G League guard Dink Pate has reached an agreement with the Knicks, sources tell Jonathan Givony of ESPN (Twitter link). No details are provided, but it appears likely to be an Exhibit 10 deal.
Pate, 19, played this season with the Mexico City Capitanes, averaging 10.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 34 games. He was selected to participate in this year’s Next Up event at All-Star Weekend.
Pate was the fourth-best player remaining among undrafted free agents, according to ESPN’s big board. He was listed as the 71st-best draft prospect by Sam Vecenie of The Athletic.
A five-star player coming out of high school, Pate opted to sign a two-year deal with G League Ignite rather than play college basketball. When the Ignite shut down after last season, he tried to enter to the 2024 NBA draft but was denied a waiver due to his age.
Pate will join the Knicks next month for the Las Vegas Summer League, according to Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link).
Knicks Notes: Free Agency, Diawara, Borrego, Coaching Search
Memphis shooting guard Luke Kennard and Detroit point guard Dennis Schröder are among the targets the Knicks could pursue in free agency, according to James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. Those are probably the best-case scenarios for New York given its limited resources, and there should be league-wide demand for both players, so the team may have to consider other options.
As Edwards explains, assuming they pick up Ariel Hukporti‘s $1.96MM option and decline a $3.5MM option on P.J. Tucker, the Knicks will have 10 players under contract with a total payroll of $196.3MM, which is already above the first apron and a little more than $10MM away from the second apron.
That leaves New York with the $5.7MM taxpayer mid-level exception and minimum-salary contracts to fill out the roster, possibly along with second-round pick Mohamed Diawara.
Other free agents Edwards mentions as MLE possibilities are Cleveland guard Ty Jerome, Phoenix guard Tyus Jones and former Orlando guard Gary Harris. He adds that Knicks free agents Landry Shamet and Delon Wright could return on minimum salaries and points to Charlotte guard Seth Curry and Indiana center Thomas Bryant as other potential minimum-salary additions.
There’s more from New York:
- The Knicks haven’t decided if Diawara, a 20-year-old French power forward, will be with the team next season or if he’ll be stashed overseas, according to Stefan Bondy of The New York Post. A league source tells Bondy that the Frenchman is expected to play in the Las Vegas Summer League next month. Diawara didn’t put up great numbers in France this season, but Bondy notes that the Knicks are intrigued by his athleticism and his 7’4″ wingspan. Bondy also hears that New York attempted to trade up for the top pick in the second round to grab St. Joseph’s forward Rasheer Fleming, who went to Phoenix instead.
- Pelicans associate head coach James Borrego‘s interview for the Knicks’ coaching vacancy will take place this weekend, according to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Twitter link). He’ll be the fourth candidate to interview, joining Taylor Jenkins, Mike Brown and Micah Nori.
- Andy Miller, an NBA agent who represents several members of the Mavericks‘ coaching staff, recently criticized the Knicks for their unusual approach to their coaching search, which included asking permission to interview five head coaches who are already under contract, per Adam Zagoria of NJ.com. “I don’t really know where Jason Kidd is in his process with the Knicks,” Miller said on Sirius XM Radio, “because I don’t really know what the process is with the Knicks. … I don’t even know if the Knicks know what their process is.”
Clippers Acquire No. 50 Pick Kobe Sanders From Knicks
10:48 pm: The trade is official, according to an announcement from the Clippers.
8:56 pm: The Clippers have moved up by one spot in the second round of the draft, acquiring the No. 50 pick from the Knicks and using it on Nevada wing Kobe Sanders, per Law Murray of The Athletic (Twitter link).
The Knicks moved down to No. 51, acquiring the draft rights from Luka Mitrovic from L.A. in the deal, reports Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Twitter link). New York used the 51st overall pick on French forward Mohamed Diawara.
Sanders, a 6’6” senior, transferred to Nevada after four seasons with Cal Poly. He averaged 15.8 points, 4.5 assists, 3.8 rebounds and 1.1 steals last season. He shot 46.2 percent from the field and 34.2 percent beyond the arc.
As for Diawara, the 6’8”, 20-year-old forward averaged 5.8 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.4 assists for Cholet last season. Diawara is also good friends with Knicks 2024 first-round pick Pacome Dadiet, according to Ian Begley of SNY TV (Twitter link). He’s viewed as a good athlete and strong defender, as he often guarded the opponent’s lead ball-handler for France’s U-20 team, Begley adds.
Mitrovic was drafted in 2015 and has never played in the NBA, so it’s safe to say he won’t be coming stateside. Fred Katz of The Athletic notes he can’t even be used as a touching point in a trade since he wasn’t part of the last nine drafts (Twitter link), so there doesn’t seem to be a compelling reason why the Knicks dropped one spot, except that the team loves to stockpile draft-rights players.
Trade Rumors: Lakers, Wiggins, Knicks, Celtics, Cavs, Bulls
After previously reporting that the Lakers checked in with the Heat to inquire on Andrew Wiggins‘ price, Anthony Irwin of ClutchPoints says the two teams have continued to explore the possibility of a Wiggins trade, though nothing is imminent.
As Irwin details, Rui Hachimura and his expiring contract would likely be the centerpiece of any deal, with another expiring contract (either Maxi Kleber‘s or Gabe Vincent‘s) necessary for salary-matching purposes. According to Irwin, league sources believe the Heat would also try to push for the inclusion of 2024 first-round pick Dalton Knecht.
A source tells Anthony Chiang and Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald that the Heat are “very open” to moving Wiggins, who was part of last season’s Jimmy Butler trade with Golden State. Trading him for expiring salaries would create additional cap flexibility for Miami in the summer of 2026.
The Lakers are also scouring the trade market for help at the center position, Irwin continues, but he has heard from league sources that the front office believes the asking price for big men so far has been too high. As a result, it’s possible Los Angeles will look to use the $5.7MM taxpayer mid-level exception to address the center position while trying to upgrade other areas of the roster on the trade market, Irwin explains.
Here are a few more trade-related rumors from around the NBA:
- Mikal Bridges‘ and Mitchell Robinson‘s names have surfaced in Knicks trade talks this offseason, according to Frank Isola of YES Network (Twitter link). Bridges and Robinson will also both be eligible to sign contract extensions beginning in July, so I’d expect New York to explore both scenarios before determining how best to move forward.
- Prior to Wednesday’s first round, the Celtics touched base with teams in the lottery, including the Spurs at No. 14, but didn’t end up finding a deal they liked, tweets Ian Begley of SNY.tv. While Jaylen Brown and Derrick White rumors have circulated this week, Sam Hauser is considered Boston’s top current trade candidate — Chris Mannix of SI.com said during an appearance on The Bill Simmons Podcast that there has been a “robust” market for Hauser (Twitter video link).
- The Cavaliers explored the possibility of trading into the first round on Wednesday, with a few picks considered to be available, but didn’t find any opportunities they deemed worthwhile, reports Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. The team holds the 49th and 58th overall picks on Thurday.
- During a press conference on Wednesday night, Bulls general manager Marc Eversley said Chicago spoke to a few teams about moving up before deciding to stand pat at No. 12 and select Noa Essengue. Everseley added that the Bulls may end up trading tonight’s No. 45 pick or using it on a draft-and-stash prospect (Twitter links via Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times).
Harrison Confirms Jason Kidd Will Coach Mavs Next Season
It appears that Jason Kidd will be staying with the Mavericks. Despite reports suggesting Kidd and the Knicks had “mutual intrigue,” Mavs president Nico Harrison confirmed in a post-draft press conference that he does not intend to let that happen.
“Is that still out there about J. Kidd? I thought I shut that down,” he said, as relayed by Dallas Morning News writer Brad Townsend (Twitter link).
“He will be the coach next year,” Harrison continued.
Although the Mavericks denied the Knicks’ request to speak to Kidd, the lack of a forthcoming extension for the head coach had led to speculation that the issue may not be quite as open-and-shut as it appeared to be.
After drafting their forward of the future in Cooper Flagg, Harrison made the news official: the Knicks will have to look elsewhere to find their coach.
In addition to speaking to Mike Brown and Taylor Jenkins, New York recently interviewed Timberwolves head coach Micah Nori and were granted permission to interview Pelicans assistant James Borrego.
Knicks Granted Permission To Interview James Borrego
The Knicks have received permission from the Pelicans to interview assistant James Borrego in their head coaching search, sources tell James L. Edwards III of The Athletic (Twitter link). Edwards first reported New York’s interest in Borrego on Monday.
The 47-year-old Borrego has served as associate head coach under Willie Green in New Orleans for the past two seasons. He has previous head coaching experience, compiling a 138-163 record in four seasons with Charlotte and a 10-20 mark as an interim head coach with Orlando 10 years ago.
Borrego will become the fourth candidate to interview with the Knicks since Tom Thibodeau was fired after losing to Indiana in the Eastern Conference Finals. Borrego joins former Memphis head coach Taylor Jenkins, former Sacramento head coach Mike Brown and current Minnesota assistant Micah Nori.
The Knicks are also reportedly monitoring Jason Kidd‘s situation in Dallas, although the Mavericks turned down their request to talk to Kidd about the position. Edwards stated Monday that Kidd seems to be a “long shot” to wind up in New York.
According to Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (subscription required), the Knicks are emphasizing player development as they seek a new head coach. Bondy adds that Heat assistant Chris Quinn is another potential candidate to watch, though there’s no indication New York has requested permission to speak to him yet.