Getty Head coach Tom Thibodeau of the New York Knicks looks on in the first half against the Denver Nuggets.
Since Leon Rose signed on to be President of Basketball Operations for the New York Knicks back in March of 2020, fans have been waiting for the highly regarded figure to bring in some top-billed star talents.
Before latching on with the franchise, Rose was a long-tenured sports agent who represented and had close personal relationships with some of the league’s most recognizable talents, and it is because of these said relationships that fans and media pundits alike have been so invested in New York’s player pursuits.
To this point in time, the Knicks have yet to execute any groundbreaking transactions and, currently, find themselves star-less as we venture on through the early stages of the 2022-23 campaign.
Now, while there are still those who are holding out hope that they’ll be able to see the $60 million executive lure in one of his former star clients in the not-too-distant future, one Eastern Conference executive recently told Heavy Sports that it’s a rather far-fetched scenario.
Knicks Landing Rose’s Star Clients ‘Not Going to Happen’
Throughout Leon Rose’s near three-year tenure with the Knicks, fans have seen a plethora of his former clients linked as being possible targets for the franchise.
From Devin Booker and Joel Embiid to Karl-Anthony Town, the list of players that have been mentioned as being on New York’s radar since 2020 is chock full of star names.
And while the concept of seeing such high-profile talents making their way to the Big Apple is without question an entertaining one to ponder, an anonymous NBA exec recently told Sean Deveney of Heavy Sports that it’s essentially just a pipe dream, especially when it comes to the three aforementioned stars.
“Ever since Leon Rose got the Knicks job (in 2020), you hear all kinds of things about him getting his former clients to New York. I am sure that was part of the appeal in hiring him in the first place for the Knicks,” the executive told Deveney.
“So, yeah, Embiid, Devin Booker, Karl-Anthony Towns, there has been talk about them going to play for Leon for the last couple of years. It’s not going to happen, though. They’re all signed to big contracts and their teams have no incentive to move them in the near future.
“KAT just signed his deal, Embiid is signed to a huge deal for the next four years, Booker is signed to a huge deal for [four] years. The Knicks can wish for players like that, we all do. But there’s nothing solid there.”
This past offseason, all three of these players inked long-term contract extensions with their respective clubs, with Embiid receiving a $196 million supermax and Towns and Booker both receiving a $224 million supermax.
Without question, these players are worthy of every penny attached to their newly signed contracts and, if added to this Knicks roster, could help the ball club in a myriad of ways.
However, despite all this, the anonymous executive believes that their lofty salaries make them unrealistic targets for New York’s front office to pursue, despite the fact that their President has already established relationships with them.
Stephen A. ‘Cautiously Optimistic’ About Knicks
Though they may not have that highly coveted star player in tow on their roster, the Knicks currently find themselves slotted into the third seed in the Eastern Conference standings with a record of 3-1.
Currently on a three-game winning streak, the ball club has shocked the New York sports world with their surprisingly sound play early on into the season, which has given fans a reason to hope that 2022-23 could be a season in which the team could once again contend for a postseason berth.
However, despite their early-season successes, Stephen A. Smith isn’t ready to fully embrace New York’s turnaround.
In an October 27 episode of ESPN’s First Take, the “life-long” Knicks fan discussed with co-host Molly Qerim and guest Jay Williams his feelings on the team’s hot start, stating that, while he’s happy with how things are playing out, he’s skeptical about how this team will perform once they play against stronger competition.
“All I want to do is caution everybody,” Smith said. “Their three victories are against the Detroit Pistons, the Orlando Magic, and a Charlotte Hornets team without [Miles] Bridges and without LaMelo Ball. And that game last night took overtime to beat [them]… Let’s pump the breaks a little bit and be cautiously optimistic.”
Currently, the combined record for each of the three teams the Knicks have beaten thus far this season is 3-11, while both the Pistons and Magic are viewed as teams that will most likely be looking to lose as many games as possible to secure a higher draft position heading into the 2023 NBA draft.
That said, this doesn’t take away from the fact that New York has taken care of business and has beaten teams they should, while their lone loss came in an exciting and illustrious effort against the Memphis Grizzlies, who are coming off of a 2021-22 campaign where they finished with the second-best record in the NBA and are led by budding superstar guard Ja Morant.