Matt Ryan Rumors | Hoops Rumors

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 Hoping To Keep Brogdon, Shamet

September 18th, 2025 at 8:33am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Knicks want to retain both Malcolm Brogdon and Landry Shamet on their 15-man opening night, according to Stefan Bondy of the New York Post. That will require a trade to open up some salary cap space and Bondy’s sources around the league believe it will happen.

The Knicks are hard-capped and can’t exceed the $207.8MM second tax apron threshold. They currently only have enough flexibility below that apron to carry one of their veteran camp invitees on the regular season roster.

Brogdon and Shamet are among a handful of veteran players signed to non-guaranteed contracts to compete for that opening. Garrison Mathews, Matt Ryan and Alex Len were also signed this week. Bondy indicates that Brogdon and Shamet passed on other opportunities and wouldn’t have done so if they were worried about getting cut.

However, the competition for that contract might last until late in training camp. The Knicks could wait to ensure that both guards remain healthy and that Brogdon looks like he’ll bounce back after a lost season with the Wizards in which he played just 24 games. It would also give the other trio a chance to prove they’re worthy of a roster spot.

As for which player might be dealt, Bondy cautions not to rule out a Miles McBride trade. McBride averaged 24.9 minutes per game last season but with Jalen Brunson and Mikal Bridges entrenched as the starters and the addition of Jordan Clarkson (plus possibly Brogdon and/or Shamet), his playing time could be reduced. Plus, he’s eligible for an extension next summer and could be an unrestricted free agent in 2027. The Knicks have so many long-term salary commitments that an extension for McBride could contribute to more cap restrictions down the road.

Pacome Dadiet and Tyler Kolek are the other logical possibilities to be dealt, though neither is likely to command as strong a return as McBride would on the trade market.

The Knicks have stated they are more committed to player development and Dadiet, their 2024 first-round pick, has the highest ceiling among their young reserves. Kolek, a 2024 second-rounder, is only making $2.19MM, so moving him and retaining two veterans would leave New York with barely any breathing room (roughly $44K) below the second apron.

Knicks Add Alex Len, Matt Ryan To Camp Roster

September 16th, 2025 at 5:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Knicks have added center Alex Len on an Exhibit 9 contract and forward Matt Ryan on an Exhibit 10 deal, according to the team’s PR department (Twitter links).

Additionally, they waived Dink Pate and Bryson Warren, who were signed to Exhibit 10 deals earlier in the day. All these moves were expected as the team rounds out its training camp roster.

New York now has all of its 21 training camp spots filled.

Len worked out with New York this week. He has been in the league since 2013, when the Suns selected him with the No. 5 overall pick. He has also played for Atlanta, Sacramento, Toronto, Washington and the Los Angeles Lakers.

Last season, he appeared in 36 games with the Kings and 10 more with the Lakers. He signed with the Lakers as a free agent after Sacramento traded him in February to the Wizards, who quickly waived him. He averaged a modest 1.6 points and 2.1 rebounds in 8.3 minutes during those 46 appearances in 2024/25 and became a free agent after the season.

As reported earlier in the day, Ryan chose to sign a training camp deal with New York, with whom he played for last season.

He was on a non-guaranteed deal and then on a two-way contract before being waived on March 1. He appeared in 19 games for the Knicks but played primarily in garbage time, scoring 28 points and grabbing eight rebounds in 68 total minutes of action.

Ryan, who has played in 82 regular season games since making his NBA debut in April 2022, is known primarily as a three-point marksman, having made 40.2% of his career attempts from beyond the arc.

Len and Ryan will try to buck long odds to secure the team’s lone available veteran’s minimum contract. Landry Shamet, Malcolm Brogdon, and Garrison Mathews are also in the mix for that deal.

Matt Ryan Signing Non-Guaranteed Deal With Knicks

September 16th, 2025 at 9:02am CST by Luke Adams

Free agent wing Matt Ryan is signing a non-guaranteed contract with the Knicks and will join the team for training camp, reports Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (Twitter link).

Ryan spent most of the 2024/25 season with the Knicks, first on a non-guaranteed deal and then on a two-way contract, before being waived on March 1. He appeared in 19 games for the team but played primarily in garbage time, scoring 28 points and grabbing eight rebounds in 68 total minutes of action.

Ryan, who has played in 82 regular season games since making his NBA debut in April 2022, is known primarily as a three-point marksman, having made 40.2% of his career attempts from beyond the arc.

Since he now has four years of NBA experience under his belt, Ryan is no longer eligible for a two-way contract, so if he’s going to make the Knicks’ regular season roster, it would have to be on a standard contract.

Given the club’s hard-cap limitations and the stiff competition he would face in camp, the 28-year-old is probably a long shot to open the season with New York. Landry Shamet, Malcolm Brogdon, and Garrison Mathews are also expected to vie for what will end up being just a single standard roster spot if the team can’t shed salary in a trade.

Ian Begley of SNY.tv first reported on Monday (via Twitter) that the Knicks were eying Ryan for a possible training camp deal.

Knicks Notes: Robinson, Achiuwa, Ryan, Bridges, Raptors Dispute

March 3rd, 2025 at 1:33pm CST by Luke Adams

Knicks center Mitchell Robinson, who missed the first 58 games of the season while recovering from ankle surgery, was “really good” on Friday in his first game back, head coach Tom Thibodeau told reporters, including Stefan Bondy of The New York Post. The big man had six points and four rebounds and was a +11 in 12 minutes in his season debut vs. Memphis.

Robinson provided the Knicks with some energy off the bench again on Sunday vs. the Heat, grabbing a pair of offensive rebounds, blocking a shot, and making his only field goal attempt in 13 minutes of action. He said after the game that he’s happy about his progress so far.

“It’s coming along. Just taking time. First game, as y’all saw, tired as hell. Second game, not so much. But still a little bit,” Robinson said, per Bondy. “That’s what’s going to happen when you miss 10 months playing ball.”

As Bondy notes in another New York Post story, Robinson has said he believes his minutes limit is 18, but he has been held in the 12-to-13 minute range in each of his first two outings so far. The 26-year-old says he’s OK with that, though he’s looking forward to being able to play a little more.

“I think each week it goes up more and more,” he said of the minutes restriction. “It is [frustrating] because it’s hard to get a rhythm.”

Here’s more on the Knicks:

Robinson’s return has pushed Precious Achiuwa out of the rotation, as Bondy observes. Achiuwa played just four minutes on Friday and was a DNP-CD for the first time this season on Sunday.
The Knicks have a pair of open two-way slots, which they’ll likely fill on Monday or Tuesday before the March 4 two-way signing deadline. Veteran sharpshooter Matt Ryan was among the two-way players waived by the team over the weekend. “I thought he did a really good job for us. Hard worker,” Thibodeau said of Ryan, according to Bondy. “You’re always looking at ways to improve the team. [Team president Leon Rose] and his staff, that’s what they do. And then we’re obviously very pleased with him and wish him well.”
Mikal Bridges‘ up-and-down season continued on Sunday as he was benched for most of crunch time during the Knicks’ comeback overtime win over Miami. Thibodeau said after the game that he stuck with Miles McBride over Bridges – who scored just five points on 2-of-11 shooting in 28 minutes – because the lineup was working, Bondy writes for The New York Post. Thibodeau added that Bridges took the decision in stride. “That’s what you love about the team. Whoever has got it going, we’re going to ride those guys a little bit more,” Thibodeau said. “The most important thing is the team winning. And Mikal is fully engaged in the team and he does a lot of the dirty work for us and it’s much appreciated.”
The arbitration hearing to settle the legal dispute between the Knicks and Raptors will take place during the week of July 21, according to Baxter Holmes of ESPN. The Knicks filed a lawsuit in August 2023 alleging that former video coordinator Ikechukwu Azotam illegally took thousands of proprietary files with him to a position in Toronto and shared them with his new club. New York was seeking $10MM in damages from the Raptors, who referred to the suit as “baseless” and argued that the issue ought to be resolved through the NBA’s arbitration process by commissioner Adam Silver rather than in court. That’s what will happen in July, despite the Knicks’ claims that Silver is biased due to his relationship with Raptors governor Larry Tanenbaum, the chairman of the league’s Board of Governors.

Knicks Cut Matt Ryan, Jacob Toppin

March 2nd, 2025 at 2:11pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Knicks have announced that they’ve waived a pair of players on two-way contracts, wing Matt Ryan and forward Jacob Toppin (Twitter link).

With these moves, only swingman Kevin McCullar remains among the club’s two-way players.

As Ian Begley of SNY.tv observes (via Twitter), New York also still has an open standard roster spot. Several intriguing veteran options remain available for the contending Knicks in free agency and the G League.

Ryan, a 6’6″ swingman, appeared in 19 regular season games for New York this season but played very sparingly, logging just 68 total minutes. He had per-game averages of 1.5 points and 0.4 rebounds in 3.6 minutes.

Ryan has also logged time with Boston, the Lakers, Minnesota and New Orleans since 2021/22. Through 82 NBA games over his four-year career, he is averaging 3.7 points, 0.9 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. Valued as a floor-spacing wing, he is a career 40.2% long-range sniper on 2.4 triple tries per night.

The 6’9″ Toppin made even less of a dent at the NBA level than Ryan this season. In 16 appearances for New York, the second-year forward averaged 0.4 points and 0.7 boards across 3.1 minutes per game.

That said, Toppin did show promise with the Westchester Knicks. In 11 regular season G League games this year, the younger brother of Pacers forward Obi Toppin averaged 25.2 points, 8.3 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 0.8 blocks and 0.7 steals per contest.

It’s worth noting that two-way contracts are only available to players who are in their first four years in the NBA, so several players rumored to be on the Knicks’ radar for their standard roster spot, like T.J. Warren, Chuma Okeke, Moses Brown, would not be two-way eligible.

Knicks Re-Sign Matt Ryan To Two-Way Contract

December 24th, 2024 at 7:19pm CST by Luke Adams

7:19pm: The Knicks have officially signed Ryan and waived Buie, according to the team’s PR department (Twitter links).

3:17pm: The Knicks intend to re-sign Matt Ryan to a two-way contract after he clears waivers, sources tell Fred Katz and James L. Edwards III of The Athletic (Twitter link). Ryan was cut from the standard roster on Sunday, so he’ll officially become a free agent at 5:00 pm ET today.

New York will waive two-way player Boo Buie in order to create a spot for Ryan, according to Katz and Edwards.

Ryan, 27, signed a non-guaranteed minimum-salary contract with the Knicks in November when they needed to add two players to their roster to get to the required minimum of 14. Ariel Hukporti, who had been on a two-way deal, was promoted to the standard roster at the same time Ryan was signed to get New York back to 14 players.

Known as a sharpshooter, Ryan has played for the Celtics, Lakers, Timberwolves, and Pelicans since making his NBA debut in April 2022, but has struggled to earn regular playing time. That was the case again this fall with the Knicks, as he appeared in just nine games, scoring 15 total points in 45 minutes. While the sample size was small, he was unable to get his three-point shot going in those outings, making just 3-of-14 (21.4%).

Still, Ryan – who is in his fourth NBA season – is the type of plug-and-play veteran capable of contributing in a pinch, so after cutting him to make room on the standard roster for Landry Shamet, the Knicks will bring him back at the expense of a developmental rookie in Buie.

An undrafted first-year pro out of Northwestern, Buie has yet to make his regular season NBA debut, having only played for the Westchester Knicks in the G League so far this season.

Assuming Ryan returns to the Knicks ahead of Wednesday’s Christmas Day game, he’ll be eligible to appear in up to a maximum of 32 more NBA games this season (a prorated portion of the usual 50-game limit).

Knicks Add Landry Shamet, Waive Matt Ryan

December 23rd, 2024 at 8:37am CST by Dana Gauruder

DECEMBER 23: The Knicks have announced the signing of Shamet (Twitter link). Both roster moves are now official.

DECEMBER 22: The Knicks have agreed to a standard contract with guard Landry Shamet, ESPN’s Shams Charania reports. It’s a one-year deal, James Edwards III of The Athletic tweets.

To make room for Shamet and remain under the second-apron hard cap, the Knicks have waived forward Matt Ryan, the team’s PR department tweets.

It’s not surprising New York brought back Shamet. who dislocated his shoulder during the preseason while participating in Knicks training camp. He remained with the Westchester Knicks in the G League while rehabbing his injury and the NBA club was simply waiting for him to get back to full strength. Coach Tom Thibodeau commented on Shamet’s status a week ago.

“It’s good to see him out there healthy again,” Thibodeau said then. “(But) there’s a number of things that have to happen before he can play with us.”

Shamet was likely to make the opening night roster prior to the injury. He had signed a non-guaranteed, minimum-salary contract during the offseason.

He was waived before opening night. Shamet appeared in 46 games with Washington last season and averaged 7.1 points in 15.8 minutes per contest. He has also played for Philadelphia, the Los Angeles Clippers, Brooklyn and Phoenix in 348 total regular season outings.

Ryan was inked to a non-guaranteed contract in early November and appeared in nine Knicks games, but logged very few minutes in those outings.

Assuming he goes unclaimed on waivers, Ryan will count for $621,439 in dead money on New York’s books. The cap hit for Shamet’s contract will depend on when he officially signs — if it’s officially finalized on Monday, the deal will carry a cap charge of $1,343,690 for the Knicks.

Eastern Rumors: Knicks, B. Brown, Stewart, Springer, Bulls

December 2nd, 2024 at 2:06pm CST by Luke Adams

Since Landry Shamet dislocated his shoulder during the preseason, scuttling his chances of making the Knicks‘ opening night roster, reports have indicated that the club is highly likely to re-sign him if and when he gets healthy.

Michael Scotto of HoopsHype confirms as much and adds another detail to those reports. According to Scotto, if Shamet returns, the hope in New York is that Matt Ryan – who is currently on a non-guaranteed contract – will clear waivers and rejoin the club on a two-way deal.

The Knicks have an open 15-man roster spot, but don’t have enough breathing room below their hard cap to carry both players on standard deals, so Ryan would have to be cut if Shamet re-signs.

Here are a few more rumors from around the Eastern Conference:

Although the Raptors declined offers of multiple second-round picks for Bruce Brown at last season’s trade deadline, there’s a widespread belief that the versatile swingman will be back on the trade block this season, per Scotto. Brown, who is on an expiring $23MM contract, continues to make his way back from arthroscopic surgery on his right knee and appears to be getting closer to making his season debut.
Isaiah Stewart‘s demotion to a bench role this season for the first time since his rookie year has led executives around the NBA to believe that the Pistons‘ big man will be available on the trade market this season, according to Scotto. Stewart is in the first season of a four-year, $60MM contract that features flat annual cap hits of $15MM.
Confirming previous reporting, Scotto says the Celtics gauged the trade market for Jaden Springer and his $4MM expiring contract in the fall. While there were teams willing to take on Springer if it means acquiring draft compensation from Boston, the C’s weren’t interested at that time in giving up draft capital to move off of the guard’s contract, Scotto reports. It will be interesting to see if that changes before the trade deadline.
Explaining the recent uptick in trade rumors surrounding the Bulls, Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times says, citing a source, that the only new development in Chicago is that the team is “starting to look at a more responsible asking price” for veterans like Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic. The Bulls remain unwilling to attach a first-round pick to LaVine though, Cowley notes.

Knicks Notes: McBride, Grimes, Offense, Ryan

November 28th, 2024 at 12:19pm CST by Rory Maher

Knicks backup guard Miles McBride returned to action on Monday following a five-game absence due to patella femoral pain syndrome in his left knee. While McBride said he “felt great” after the victory in Denver and praised the organization and training staff, he said the injury — which is more commonly known as runner’s knee — is something he’ll have to manage throughout the season.

“I would say we’re definitely gonna be managing it going forward,” McBride said, per Peter Botte of The New York Post. “We just wanna be more precautionary I think than anything, just to make sure everything is right. I felt great and I think it’s gonna be behind me, but I just want to be smart with it.”

Here are a few more notes on the Knicks:

Fourth-year wing Quentin Grimes had a tumultuous end to his Knicks tenure last season, ultimately being traded to Detroit at the February deadline before being rerouted to Dallas in another trade over the offseason. Following the Mavericks‘ victory over New York on Wednesday, Grimes praised Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau, as Stefan Bondy of The New York Post relays. “Credit to Thibs,” Grimes said. “He gave me a lot of those hard assignments early in my career and I feel like I was able to get a good understanding of how to guard All-Stars, superstars, and it gets me going.” Grimes, who finished with a season-high 21 points on 7-of-13 shooting starting in place of the injured Luka Doncic, will be a restricted free agent in 2025.
The Knicks currently have the second-best offensive rating in the NBA but are just 24th in defense. One game after scoring a league-high 145 points in Denver, New York’s high-powered offense struggled with Dallas’ switching defensive scheme, Bondy writes for The New York Post. The Knicks shot just 26% from the field in the first half. “We couldn’t buy a basket to save our lives to start the game,” Jalen Brunson said. “Defensively, we just weren’t there. It’s a long season. Honestly, got to limit the highs and lows and be as steady as we can be.”
Winning the NBA Cup will be a financial windfall for players whose salaries are relatively low. Each member of the first-place team will earn about $515K; a two-way player’s full-season salary is about $579K. Reserve forward Matt Ryan, who is on a non-guaranteed minimum-salary deal, plans to put his potential NBA Cup earnings into his startup investment company, according to Bondy (Sports+ link). The Knicks are 2-0 during in-season tournament play so far with a point differential of plus-14.