The New York Knicks aren’t facing the same roster issues other teams around the NBA are dealing with, as the franchise actually needs to sign a few more players rather than cut any before the new season begins. The Knicks are reportedly eyeing a move for another center and could potentially make a Miles McBride trade in one final offseason move to replace the now-gone Mitchell Robinson.
New York has made several training camp signings, but heading into the season, all of those players currently with the team aren’t guaranteed a spot on the final opening night roster.
With that, the Knicks have a few decisions to make. Signing or trading for a new center appears to be the ‘priority,’ and according to a recent report, the defending champions have been aggressive in searching for a way to add one more big man.
Knicks Need To Sign More Players Before Season Begins
Reporting about the Knicks for ClutchPoints.com, NBA insider Brett Siegel explained that though the Knicks have a few players on deals, they’ll need to pick a few of them to fill out the full roster and join them in their title defense.
“The New York Knicks find themselves not as a team facing a roster crunch but needing to actually add one player before the start of the season since they have 13 players under contract,” he wrote.
“Entering training camp and Media Day, the Knicks had signed veterans like John Konchar, Ochai Agbaji, Bruce Brown, James Wiseman, and Drew Eubanks to non-guaranteed deals that could be converted into standard contracts,” he added, before mentioning the New York waived Konchar due to a personal matter. “In his place, the Knicks announced that they signed veteran center Tony Bradley to an Exhibit-9 contract, putting him in a battle with Wiseman and Eubanks in the frontcourt.”
The Knicks have their core, but as seen last season, building around the edges is very important as well. All of the players on non-guaranteed deals could make the final roster, but it remains to be seen who of that group the front office makes a priority. Money is an issue, and someone could be waived or traded for New York to stay below the dreaded second apron.
“The Knicks still have two open roster spots, but they only have about $3.2 million to work with before reaching the second apron, which is essentially the team’s hard cap since owner James Dolan made it clear he won’t be crossing that line,” Siegel added.
New York Eyeing Miles McBride Trade For New Center
Keeping at least one of those players could help New York next season, but if they want to take a bigger risk for a backup center to replace Robinson, they could make a trade.
As Siegel mentioned, a new big man is a priority for the Knicks, and if they don’t feel comfortable locking down Eubanks or Wiseman, a trade could be coming soon that could include McBride, who remains in stalled contract extension talks with the franchise’s decision-makers.
“Adding another big man is a priority for the Knicks, sources said, leading many to assume that one of these three centers will make the Opening Night roster on some sort of partially guaranteed deal. The Knicks have also been aggressive looking for minor deals on the trade block utilizing the contracts of Pacome Dadiet and Miles McBride in hopes of adding an impactful center to their bench unit.”
McBride is reportedly “not close” to getting a contract extension from the Knicks, according to team insider Fred Katz. If he wants more money and New York isn’t willing to give it to him, they could find a trade partner looking to give up a big man for the young guard.
Dadiet could also be moved, but McBride has the higher value. Losing him would be tough, but as seen throughout NBA history, a title defense never comes with easy decisions to make.
Regardless of whether the Knicks trade for a new center or not, roster changes are coming. At least one of the players at training camp on a non-guaranteed contract will join the roster for the 2026-27 season as New York begins its run to become the first team in nearly a decade to win back-to-back championships.
Knicks Eyeing ‘Aggressive’ Miles McBride Trade For Center In ‘Priority’ Roster Decision