Knicks Notes: Offseason, Towns, Rose
The Knicks have played their final game of the season after losing Game 6 to the Pacers on Saturday. Now come the questions. But according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks, the team should be wary of overreacting to the loss, just as the Pacers were when they lost last year’s Eastern Conference Finals to the Celtics.
Marks points to an interview with owner James Dolan earlier this season on Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart‘s Roommates podcast.
“You really have to do the fundamentals, the basics. You’ve got to build a team. You’ve got to build an organization. There is no waving a wand over a team and all of a sudden it makes it a great team,” Dolan said at the time.
The question is whether that will hold true for a team with some real areas of concern on its roster and very limited avenues to address them. The Knicks’ entire bench outside of Mitchell Robinson and Miles McBride are free agents, with team options on P.J. Tucker and rookie center Ariel Hukporti. They will have access to the $5.7MM taxpayer mid-level exception, but using it will trigger a hard cap at the second apron. The rest of the much-needed depth would have to be filled out using minimum-salary contracts, the draft (New York holds only the No. 50 overall pick), and limited trade tools.
Marks points to Robinson’s $13MM expiring salary as a potential trade chip if the Knicks decide to make a bigger move, but they also only have one movable first-rounder (the Wizards’ 2026 top-eight protected pick), along with a few potential pick swaps, to include in a deal.
Finally, the Knicks will have Mikal Bridges‘ extension to decide on. A new deal for Bridges would kick in for 2026, so it doesn’t impact this summer’s salary situation. Karl-Anthony Towns is also extension-eligible, though with three years left on his current contract, it’s a less pressing concern.
We have more from the Knicks:
- Given the reluctance of Knicks leadership to speak openly or address the media, parsing the next steps forward is something akin to reading the tea leaves, writes Steve Popper of Newsday. He points to president of basketball operations Leon Rose‘s patience in building this roster, though the Towns and Bridges trades seemed to signal a willingness to be more aggressive. Popper also points to the same Dolan interview referenced by Marks, in which the reclusive owner said, “[Rose] has done a good job of lining up the contracts. So this isn’t our only season. So we’re going to play a bunch of seasons together. You take a look at teams like Boston that have played together. They get to draw off something that they built off that period of time. And for this team, that’s really the challenge today, going into the playoffs. It’s to build that inside of the team, something that we can draw on.”
- While reports about the team’s frustrations with Towns’ defense began circulating moments after the Knicks’ season ended, Brunson’s praised Towns prior to Game 6 for how he was able to fight through multiple playoff injuries to stay active and involved in the series. “I have the utmost respect for him and the way he’s been able to play throughout this entire season and playoffs,” Brunson said, per Jared Schwartz of the New York Post. Despite a lingering knee injury, Towns finished the series with averages of 24.8 points and 12.2 rebounds while shooting 36.7% from three on five attempts per game.
- While it could be a challenging offseason for the Knicks, Rose has earned the benefit of the doubt when it comes to how to keep taking the right steps forward as an organization, writes the New York Post’s Mike Vaccaro. Vaccaro says that while Rose’s track record spearheading the Knicks isn’t impeccable — after all, whose is? — it has come pretty close, as has his ability to pivot in the rare moments he does make mistakes, such as the summer of 2021 when he built the offseason around signing Evan Fournier and Kemba Walker. Vaccaro suggests the club would benefit from acquiring a starting-caliber player who could shift energizer bunny Hart back to the role he was meant to play, as the team’s sixth man. However, he cautions that any such move would need to be for a player who can defend at a high level, given the limitations to the Brunson and Towns defensive tandem. Rose has earned that benefit of the doubt, Vaccaro writes, but his test starts now.
Timberwolves Notes: Randle, Reid, Durant
Timberwolves forward Julius Randle has emerged as perhaps the most intriguing potential free agent of the 2025 offseason, writes Jake Fischer of The Stein Line.
After trading five-time All-Star big man Karl-Anthony Towns to New York in exchange for a package headlined by Randle and Donte DiVincenzo, the Timberwolves made the Western Conference Finals for a second straight season, with Randle playing a major role in the team’s first- and second-round series wins over the Lakers and Warriors.
Bringing in Randle and DiVincenzo added play-making around incumbent All-NBA guard Anthony Edwards while giving the Timberwolves significantly more financial flexibility to try to re-sign free agent wing Nickeil Alexander-Walker and potential free agent Naz Reid this summer.
Sources tell Fischer that the Timberwolves viewed Randle as a better fit than Towns next to Edwards due to the veteran forward’s ability to score downhill and pass from the post.
As Fischer writes, it took the Timberwolves a year to fully integrate Rudy Gobert following their 2022 deal for the Frenchman, so they may be optimistic about Randle’s potential to get even more comfortable and continue meshing with Edwards in year two. However, Randle – who has a $30.9MM player option for 2025/26 – could also function as a potential salary-matching piece if Minnesota opts to renew its trade-deadline pursuit of Kevin Durant.
There’s more from Minnesota:
- Reid is expected to decline his $15.1MM player option and hit unrestricted free agency, according to Fischer. Although far more teams are projected to have major cap space next summer as opposed to 2025, Reid could earn some long-term security on a new deal now. He had a solid run during the 2024/25 regular season, but was a bit inconsistent during the playoffs.
- According to Fischer, the Timberwolves reached out to at least one Eastern Conference squad in an effort to get help acquiring Durant from the Suns before the trade deadline. Minnesota’s interest in the 15-time All-Star was said to be significant. The 2014 MVP may no longer be quite the defender he was during his Oklahoma City/Golden State prime, but he remains one of the best scorers in the game today, even at the relatively advanced age of 36. After Phoenix finished outside of the playoff mix with a 36-46 record, it seems quite possible a Durant trade could be on the table again this summer.
- In case you missed it, Orlando is viewed as a candidate to get involved in the bidding for Alexander-Walker this summer.
And-Ones: NBA On TNT, Offseason, Free Agents, Finals
TNT’s 36-year partnership with the NBA officially ended on Saturday, as the network’s coverage of the Eastern Conference Finals wrapped up with a six-game Indiana series win over New York.
Broadcast rights negotiations with TNT parent company Warner Bros. Discovery fell apart last year, and ultimately the NBA opted to split its rights between ABC/ESPN, NBC, and Amazon Prime Video. TNT Sports did secure the rights to broadcast games beyond the U.S., including in parts of Latin America and in Nordic countries, writes Richard Deitsch of The Athletic.
Although TNT’s relationship with the league is officially over, its impact will endure, according to The Athletic’s Deitsch and James Jackson.
“If I had written the script, the NBA and TNT would be together forever,” TNT’s ‘Inside The NBA’ mainstay Ernie Johnson said during his last statement while broadcasting an NBA game for the network. ‘Inside The NBA’ broadcasts will move to ESPN/ABC next season. “It’s not going to happen, but while I was disappointed, I was sad, I was not bitter. We know how business works. Gratitude is the operative word for me.”
Deitsch and Jackson caution that the unpredictable, free-flowing nature of ‘Inside The NBA’ broadcasts may be hampered when the program is aired on a new network.
There’s more from around the basketball world:
- With just two teams’ seasons still going, Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report takes stock of what all 30 league clubs must address and correct this summer. Notably, Buckley observes that the Hawks need to determine a direction for their future, as they have struggled lately to balance veteran All-Star Trae Young with their intriguing younger players, while Buckley recommends that the Pistons need to find a true co-star for All-NBA guard Cade Cunningham, suggesting that Jaden Ivey, Tobias Harris and free agent Malik Beasley may just not cut it.
- Although not every team has the funds to sign them, Mo Dakhil of Bleacher Report lists five free agent players who have clearly earned significant raises with their play in 2024/25, including Timberwolves big man Naz Reid (who holds a player option) and Cavaliers guard Ty Jerome.
- The Thunder are gearing up for their first NBA Finals appearance in 13 seasons — chump change compared to the Pacers’ 25-year wait. In an extensive Finals preview, Eric Nehm and Kelly Iko of The Athletic take stock of the teams’ two regular season encounters (which Oklahoma City won 2-0), pick the most critical matchups to watch, identify X-factors, and make their predictions. Meanwhile, Zach Kram and Kevin Pelton of ESPN unpack seven key elements that could determine the outcome of this impending series, which tips off on Thursday.
Central Notes: Ivey, Bulls, Turner
Pistons guard Jaden Ivey had a very promising 2024/25 season — for the 30 games he was on the floor, at least.
Keith Langlois of Pistons.com reviews Ivey’s third pro season and considers what’s next for him, noting that the third-year pro evolved as a jump shooter and a creator under new head coach J.B. Bickerstaff.
Across the aforementioned 30 healthy bouts, Ivey averaged 17.6 points, 4.1 boards and 4.0 dimes per game ahead of becoming extension-eligible this summer. Bickerstaff has been an ardent fan of Ivey’s play, according to Langlois, who writes that the 6’4″ guard can thrive both off-ball alongside All-NBA point guard Cade Cunningham and as a lead ball handler without Cunningham.
Langlois observes that Ivey’s role leading bench units could hinge on what happens with reserve guard Dennis Schröder in free agency.
There’s more out of the Central Division:
- The Bulls are potentially interested in selecting BYU guard Egor Demin with the No. 12 pick in this month’s draft — if he’s still available at that point, as Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times reiterates in a story breaking down four potential lottery targets for the team. Cowley, who previously reported Chicago’s potential interest in Demin, also takes a closer look at Derik Queen, Collin Murray-Boyles, and Asa Newell.
- The Pacers, now back in the NBA Finals for the first time in 25 years, face a major decision this summer when it comes to the future of free agent center Myles Turner, per Peter Botte of The New York Post. While Indiana is considered likely to retain the 6’11” big man, he could become a hot commodity this summer. A unique three-and-D center, the Texas alum has been a critical contributor to his team’s two straight Eastern Conference Finals runs, and will prove integral if it hopes to fend off Oklahoma City in the Finals. Indiana holds a $2.9MM option on his backup, Tony Bradley, while third-stringer Thomas Bryant will also hit unrestricted free agency.
- In case you missed it, Pacers forward Pascal Siakam was honored as the club’s Eastern Conference Finals MVP for his performance against New York, in a narrow 5-4 vote.
Thunder Notes: Caruso, Daigneault, Alexander-Walker, Finals Odds
Alex Caruso is the only Thunder player who has been to the NBA Finals, but he didn’t get the full experience, writes Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. Although Caruso was a member of the title-winning Lakers team in 2020, the end of that season and the entire playoffs took place in a closed setting at Disney World in Orlando. That meant no fans, no travel and nothing to match the excitement that will be in the air when this year’s Finals get underway Thursday night in Oklahoma City.
“The Finals in the bubble still had the tangible feel of a Finals,” Caruso said. “You knew what was up for grabs. That adrenaline before the game, obviously, I don’t think it would probably be the same adrenaline level that you feel with fans, just being on the other side of it now. But understanding what’s at stake was still very apparent.”
Caruso was in his third NBA season during that COVID-interrupted campaign. Now 31, he’s the oldest player on an OKC team that’s the second-youngest to reach the Finals in the past 70 years. Considering the Thunder’s dominance throughout the season — 80-18 overall and 43-7 on their home court — Caruso doesn’t believe he’ll have to inspire his teammates for the challenge ahead.
“You don’t have to do anything special. You just have to be who we are,” he said. “That’s worked for us throughout this whole year. So, I’m just continuing to emphasize with the guys, just do what we’ve done all year. Compete at a high level, play together, play as a team. When we do that, we’re pretty good.”
There’s more from Oklahoma City:
- The Thunder wrapped up the Western Conference title last Wednesday and will have been off for more than a full week by the time the NBA Finals start on Thursday, notes Joel Lorenzi of The Oklahoman. It’s the second extended break of the playoffs for OKC, and coach Mark Daigneault is working to keep his players in the right mindset. “You don’t want to be so wise that you’re overcautious,” he said. “You don’t want to be so confident that you’re overconfident. You kind of have to hold those two things, the confidence and the urgency or the wisdom. You have to hold those things in balance.”
- Nickeil Alexander-Walker could be a perfect offseason addition for the Thunder if they can work out a sign-and-trade with the Timberwolves, contends Michael Stamps of Sports Illustrated. The free agent guard is the cousin of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and they play together on the Canadian national team.
- The Thunder are heavy betting favorites heading into the NBA Finals, according to an ESPN story. Oklahoma City has -750 odds to be the next NBA champion, while Indiana is listed at +525.
Turkish Team Hopes To Sign Dante Exum, Vasilije Micic
Turkish powerhouse Fenerbahce is targeting two NBA players for next season, according to international basketball writer Zafer Ertas (Twitter link), who reports that negotiations have already begun with Dante Exum and Vasilije Micic.
Exum, who’ll turn 30 next month, will be an unrestricted free agent after spending the past two years with the Mavericks. He made a surprise return to the NBA in 2023 after spending the previous two years with FC Barcelona and Partizan Belgrade in the EuroLeague. He was a consistent rotation member as Dallas reached the NBA Finals during the 2023/24 season, appearing in 55 games and averaging 7.8 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 19.8 minutes per night.
Exum put up similar numbers this year, but he was limited to 20 games having missed the first 48 games of the season while recovering from wrist surgery and nearly a month down the stretch after breaking his hand. Injuries have been a constant for Exum, who was selected by Utah with the fifth pick in the 2014 draft, but was only fully healthy for his rookie season. He also spent time with Cleveland and Houston before leaving for Europe in 2021.
Micic isn’t officially a free agent yet, but the Suns are expected to decline their $8.1MM team option for next season before the June 29 deadline. The 31-year-old point guard made just five brief appearances after being acquired from Charlotte in early February.
Micic was named EuroLeague MVP with Anadolu Efes in 2021 and is a two-time league champion. He made his NBA debut with the Thunder last season, but was never able to establish a consistent role with any of his three teams. He has averaged 6.8 points, 1.8 rebounds and 3.9 assists in 101 total NBA games.
Micic has also reportedly received interest from Real Madrid, Hapoel Tel Aviv, Crvena Zvezda and Olympiacos. A story last week indicated that he wants to be paid five million euros ($5.685MM), which is a pricey sum for a EuroLeague team.
Pacers Notes: Siakam, Bryant, Walker, Bradley
Pascal Siakam lifted the Pacers into the NBA Finals with the kind of performance the team envisioned when it traded for him in the middle of last season, writes Shakeia Taylor of The Athletic. Siakam was named MVP of the Eastern Conference Finals after capping a tremendous series with a 31-point night. Indiana officials believed his talent on both ends of the court, along with the championship experience he gained in Toronto, made him the perfect addition to take a young team to new heights.
“Well, if you have the right player to build around, it can happen much faster than you think,” head coach Rick Carlisle said. “Getting Tyrese (Haliburton) made it very clear what our identity as a team needed to be. We needed to be a fast-paced team with shooting, and we had some good shooting at the time. The Siakam trade took things to another level.”
Siakam made an immediate impact after being acquired in January of 2024, averaging 21.3 points, 7.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists for the rest of the season and helping Indiana reach the conference finals. Taylor notes that his leadership skills became evident after losing that series, as he invited his teammates to his home during the offseason to further build their chemistry.
“We brought in a champion, and then you brought in someone that’s been there before … someone who had to work his way up,” Myles Turner said. “He’s a G League champion, G League Finals MVP, and (an) All-Star. (He’s) someone who’s also seen the highs and lows and (has) that championship experience. There’s only so much I can tell guys. When you have someone who’s actually been in trenches, who has actually felt what it feels like … it’s so underrated, just the emotions this time of the year. You don’t sleep. You lose hair. You can’t explain that if you’ve never been here before.”
There’s more from Indiana:
- Thomas Bryant was moved to tears during the Pacers’ celebration Saturday night, per James Boyd of The Athletic. It’s not a moment the backup center could have expected earlier in the season when he was stuck on the end of Miami’s bench. His fortunes changed after James Wiseman and Isaiah Jackson both suffered Achilles tears, prompting Indiana to acquire him in December for the low price of a 2031 second-round pick swap. Bryant enjoyed one of the high points of his career on Saturday, contributing 11 points, three rebounds and one block in 13 minutes. “It’s a lot of emotions, man, just going through the past year of just the ups and downs of the NBA,” he said. “Playing, not playing, being totally out of the lineup, getting spare minutes here and there. And then, getting traded and not really knowing what the future might hold, but you just know you wanted to come contribute to a team and try to help them win in any way possible.”
- Jarace Walker was on crutches as he celebrated with his teammates, according to Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star. The second-year power forward suffered a sprained right ankle early in the fourth quarter while battling for a rebound. He had to crawl off the court as New York got possession of the ball, and he needed help to get to the locker room. “It’s an ankle,” Carlisle confirmed. “He’s on crutches. He’s young. That’s good. I did not see a replay of the play, so I don’t know how far turned over it was, how much weight. But when a guy goes down and stays down like that, you’re always holding your breath.”
- Tony Bradley was declared active shortly before game time, but Carlisle opted not to use him in the wake of a left hip injury he suffered in Game 5, Dopirak tweets. “He was available but unable to really run and extend at full speed,” Carlisle explained.
Knicks Notes: Hart, Tucker, Towns, Bridges, Thibodeau
The Knicks just completed their most successful season in over two decades, but that doesn’t guarantee the core of the team will stay together, writes Zach Braziller of The New York Post. After winning 51 games and reaching the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in 25 years, the season ended in disappointment Saturday night with a 17-point loss at Indiana in Game 6.
New York was favored heading into the series and appeared to be good position to reach its first NBA Finals since 1999 after dispatching the Celtics in the second round and seeing the top-seeded Cavaliers lose to Indiana. However, the Knicks let a big lead slip away in the opener against the Pacers and weren’t able to recover from a 2-0 series deficit.
Reflecting on the season, Josh Hart told reporters that changes often follow when teams fall short of their goals.
“You’re always going to hear me say, ‘Run it back,’” Hart said. “I think you heard me say the same thing last year with the guys we had. I’d like to do it. I feel like this team is good enough to make the next step. But it’s a business. And when you don’t get to where you feel like you could’ve or should’ve, changes are made.”
With Hart, Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby, Mitchell Robinson and Miles McBride all under contract for next season, the Knicks have the option to attempt another run at the Finals with the same group intact. But they were in a similar position a year ago and opted for two major offseason trades that brought in Bridges and Towns.
“This is my eighth year. This is my fourth organization. I’ve had six or seven coaches,” Hart said. “It’s tough, we’re going to have to see. Don’t think you can ever be too comfortable. I’ll open [the X app] one day and I’m somewhere else. That’s what’s disappointing the most, knowing there’s a good chance this team might not be back in totality.”
There’s more on the Knicks:
- The path to the conference finals wasn’t smooth, as players held several team meetings to help them refocus after losses, league sources tell James L. Edwards and Fred Katz of The Athletic. They note that the team had to deal with disputes on the bench, criticism that coach Tom Thibodeau was leaning too heavily on his starters, and player comments regarding “sacrifice,” “egos” and “agendas.” A players-only meeting following the Game 5 loss at Boston was called by P.J. Tucker, whom the authors say was signed as a free agent to help bring order to the team. The front office believed there was a need for better locker room leadership, so the 40-year-old Tucker, who only appeared in three regular season games, was added in April instead of someone who could provide more help on the court.
- Teammates and coaches were frustrated throughout the season by Towns’ poor defensive habits, Edwards and Katz add. Sources tell them that Towns would often fail to execute the correct coverage without explaining why, leading some players to believe he “didn’t grasp the importance of the matter.”
- Bridges will become eligible for a four-year, $156MM extension this summer, which will be the next step in seeing if management plans a long-term commitment to the current roster. Edwards and Katz report that Bridges’ fit wasn’t as smooth as expected, as he “shied away from physicality,” missed too many jump shots and didn’t provide the consistent defensive presence that he displayed earlier in his career. He also talked to the press in March about the starters playing too many minutes, which the authors state is a taboo subject to discuss publicly on Thibodeau teams.
- Thibodeau’s job appears to be safe, as he has strong support from team president Leon Rose and Brunson, according to Edwards and Katz, although they point out that owner James Dolan has the final decision. Brunson bristled at speculation about his coach’s future after Saturday’s game, relays Jared Schwartz of The New York Post, responding, “Is that a real question right now? You just asked me if I believe he’s the right guy. Yes. Come on.”
Pascal Siakam Named Eastern Conference Finals MVP
Pacers forward Pascal Siakam was named MVP of the Eastern Conference Finals as Indiana closed out New York in Game 6 Saturday night. Siakam prevailed in a close race, topping teammate Tyrese Haliburton by a 5-4 margin in voting by a panel of media members (Twitter link).
Both players were outstanding in leading Indiana to its first NBA Finals appearance in 25 years. Siakam averaged 24.8 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists throughout the series and delivered 31 points in Saturday’s closeout game.
Haliburton posted 21.o points, 6.0 rebounds and 10.5 assists per game during the series and finished Game 6 with 21 points and 13 assists.
“First of all, shoutout Indy, man,” Siakam said during the trophy presentation (YouTube video link). “It’s been such an amazing experience for me so far from the first day I landed here, like the love’s been amazing. (General manager Chad Buchanan), (president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard), just unbelievable, man. First-class organization, I’m just so happy to be here. And tonight, after a bad Game 5, we wanted to bounce back. I have 100% belief in my teammates. Whenever we’re down, we always find a way, and we did that tonight.”
The Eastern Conference Finals MVP trophy, which is named in honor of Larry Bird, was introduced three years ago. It was won by Boston’s Jayson Tatum in 2022, Miami’s Jimmy Butler in 2023 and Boston’s Jaylen Brown in 2024.
The Pacers will continue their pursuit of their first NBA title when the Finals begin Thursday night in Oklahoma City. The complete Finals schedule can be found here.
Quinton Crawford Joining Trail Blazers’ Coaching Staff
The Trail Blazers will fill one of the openings on their coaching staff by hiring Kings G League coach Quinton Crawford, sources tell NBA insider Chris Haynes (Twitter link). Crawford will be an assistant to head coach Chauncey Billups, who received a multiyear extension in April.
The 34-year-old guided the Stockton Kings to the G League championship in his first season with the team, defeating the Osceola Magic in the three-game finals. He finished third in the G League Coach of the Year balloting.
Before joining the Kings organization last fall, Crawford spent time on the coaching staffs of the Hornets, Magic, Lakers, Mavericks and Suns. He won an NBA title with L.A. in 2020 as an assistant to Frank Vogel.
After being dismissed by Phoenix last spring when Vogel and his staff were fired, Crawford got his next opportunity when Sacramento hired him in September.
Three openings were created last month when Portland decided not to renew the contracts of assistants Roy Rogers, Chris Fleming and Ryan Gomes.
The Blazers are also re-signing assistant coaches Nate Bjorkgren and Ronnie Burrell, along with analytics coach Jacob Mooallem, agent Andy Miller of Klutch Sports confirmed to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).