Boston Celtics forward Grant Williams scores during the second half in Game 7 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference finals against the Miami Heat Monday, May 29, 2023, in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
The Knicks are a team with many options on the table this offseason in regard to how they want to build their team. However, if Josh Hart opts into his $12.9 million player option, which we discussed this weekend, it would allow the Knicks to free up $12.7 million in space, which is just more than the mid-level exemption.
So what could New York do with that MLE?
We covered some potential free-agent targets earlier in the offseason, so some of these names will be repeats, but we’ll now only look at players who could be interested in accepting the mid-level exemption.
Donte DiVincenzo
We’ve covered DiVencenzo in the article above, but Jake Fischer of Yahoo! Sports reported that the former Villanova guard has declined his player option and that there’s “growing noise among league personnel” that he will be joining former teammates Josh Hart and Jalen Brunson in New York.
The 6’4″ guard shot 39.7% from deep this year and 36.2% for his career, so he would bring the floor spacing that the Knicks desperately need. He is also a strong defender, which would make him a great addition to the rotation, especially if New York uses either Quentin Grimes or Immanuel Quickley in a deal for a big-name player.
Bruce Brown Jr.
We covered Brown in his own article here, so check that out, but the case for him is that he’s a reliable 3-and-D wing who, despite being 6’4″ has proven that, like DiVincenzo, he can guard bigger wings. Brown also shot 35.8% from three after shooting 35.9% from beyond the arc in two seasons with the Nets. He has also shown the skills to operate as a backup point guard, which would give the Knicks added flexibility.
Grant Williams
Grant Williams played a career-high 25.9 minutes for the Boston Celtics this season…
Read the full article here
Leave a Reply