The New York Knicks may not be finished with Nick Richards after all.
Richards signed a one-year, non-guaranteed contract with Miami last week after New York had been linked to him earlier in free agency. The Heat currently control his rights, but the structure of his deal leaves one important opening: Richards’ $3.1 million salary does not become fully guaranteed unless he remains on Miami’s roster on opening night.
If the Heat waive him before then, Richards would return to the market — and the Knicks would have both a need and the roster flexibility to revisit him.
New York currently has only 13 players on standard contracts, leaving two openings below the NBA’s 15-man maximum. The Knicks also remain unusually unfinished at the developmental level, with all three of their two-way contract slots still vacant.
The frontcourt remains the more pressing issue.
Mitchell Robinson left for Boston, Ariel Hukporti departed, and the Knicks have only Karl-Anthony Towns and Andre Drummond as established centers. Their unsuccessful offer sheet to restricted free agent Moussa Cisse provided another indication that New York still wants another big man.
Richards could become available again before the season even begins.
Nick Richards Has Message for Teams That Passed
Richards did not expect his free agency to end with a non-guaranteed contract.
The 28-year-old has started 114 NBA games over six seasons, but when his market failed to develop as anticipated, he accepted a deal that requires him to earn his place on Miami’s opening-night roster.
And Richards made clear that he remembers the teams that did not pursue him more aggressively.
“I think that there are a lot of teams that passed up on me that I felt like they should have given me more consideration,” Richards told reporters via Miami Herald’s Anthony Chiang. “But it didn’t work that way, and I feel like it’s just time for me to show them that you guys were wrong and you should have picked me.”
That comment carries some added intrigue for New York because the Knicks were among the teams connected to Richards earlier in the offseason.
Richards averaged 5.8 points and 5.1 rebounds in 48 games split between Phoenix and Chicago last season. Rebounding remains his calling card. He has averaged at least 11 rebounds per 36 minutes in four consecutive seasons and ranked 24th in rebounding percentage among players who appeared in at least 25 games last season.
Knicks Have Room to Wait on Heat Decision
Miami has every reason to give Richards a legitimate opportunity.
The Heat needed another conventional center behind Bam Adebayo and Bobby Portis, and Richards has played 99% of his NBA minutes at center. His physicality, offensive rebounding and willingness to do the less glamorous work also fit the identity Miami typically values.
But the Heat protected themselves by leaving his contract non-guaranteed until opening night.
That is where the Knicks come back into the picture.
New York does not have to make a move now. With only 13 standard contracts on the books, it can monitor Miami’s camp and preserve an opening if Richards unexpectedly becomes available. The Knicks are also the rare team that has yet to use any of its three two-way slots, underscoring how much roster-building work remains before the season.
Richards would not solve New York’s long-term center question by himself. But at 28, with 114 starts and a proven rebounding track record, he would offer more experienced insurance behind Towns and Drummond.
Richards is trying to make sure Miami never has to decide whether to waive him.
If it does, however, the Knicks are positioned to make another call.
Knicks Could Get Another Shot at Former Center Target Before Opening Night