The New York Knicks have the majority of their talent locked up on long-term contracts, whether it be rookie deals or extensions.
Last off-season, RJ Barrett was signed to a new deal amounting to $107 million over four years. Unfortunately, Barrett hasn’t lived up to the potential and hype yet, but at 22 years old, he has plenty of time left to expand upon his talents.
This upcoming off-season, the Knicks have a few decisions to make, with the easy one being Derrick Rose, who is inevitably departing and hitting free agency. Rose served the Knicks well in 2022 but hasn’t made much of an impact the season, with Immanuel Quickley taking such a big step forward and the acquisition of Jalen Brunson.
Two big free-agent decisions for the Knicks:
1.) Josh Hart
Acquired at the trade deadline, shooting guard Josh Hart should be an essential retention for the Knicks. At 28 years old, Hart is a great role player who exerts 100% maximum effort and can score at a decent clip. Across 25 games, Hart is averaging 10.2 points, 7.0 total rebounds, 3.6 assists, and a career-high 1.4 steals per game. He’s also shooting .586 from the field with a .519 3-point percentage, despite only attempting 2.1 per game.
Hart could land a decent payday in free agency, but he’s more of a complementary player that features with the second team than a regular starter. A deal in the $10 million per season range could be a reasonable compromise, and the Knicks would be smart to keep him around for the long haul. A similar deal to Alec Burks could make sense — three years, $30 million.
2.) Miles McBride
The second big decision is former second-round draft pick Miles McBride, who hasn’t made much of an impact but is still only 22 years old and has plenty of developmental optimism.
McBride is averaging just 11.9 points per game this year, averaging 3.5 points, 0.8 total rebounds, 1.1 assists, and shooting .358 from the field. McBride isn’t known for his offensive qualities but rather for his elite defense. If he can continue to expand upon his shooting qualities and offer great defense when called upon, there’s still value to be had.
At such a cheap price point, the Knicks would be smart to pick up his team option and continue developing him behind the scenes since they may need his services if any injuries occur at the point guard position.