Getty Doug McDermott during a November 5 game against the Toronto Raptors.
Another successful season for the New York Knicks, and still, another summer of offseason speculation awaits. Is veteran wing Doug McDermott a free-agent fit?
The 10-year veteran is coming off of a season spent with both the Indiana Pacers and San Antonio Spurs. He’s a career 41-percent three-point shooter, and will be an unrestricted free agent in the offseason.
McDermott was listed as an “Ideal Free Agent” for the Knicks in Zach Buckley‘s April 18 column for Bleacher Report.
He cited New York’s middle-of-the-pack three-point performance in the regular season as a primary motivator.
“Despite Donte DiVincenzo doing everything he can to change this take,” Buckley wrote. “There still probably isn’t enough three-point volume in New York’s attack.The Knicks certainly don’t shy away from the three-ball, but there is room to grow from their rankings of 10th in three-point makes and 13th in long-range attempts.”
It would be a reunion for McDermott and the Knicks, who he played 55 games for in the 2017-2018 season.
But is there room for him on the surging New York Knicks? Would there be minutes to justify signing Doug McDermott?
McDermott’s Potential Fit in NYC
It’s increasingly hard to gauge what the Knicks will be looking for, as they’ve yet to play out their postseason.
But consistent three-point shooting is a premium in today’s NBA. Teams can quite literally never get enough.
McDermott made 94-of-229 three-point attempts this season while playing just 14.1 minutes per game between two teams.
42.6-percent of his field-goal attempts were from three. That would be the highest of any Knicks player this season.
At 6-foot-6 and 225 pounds, he played 92-percent of his minutes at small forward.
Players who logged a majority of their minutes at small forward for New York this season include Josh Hart and mid-season trade acquisition OG Anunoby.
But a season-ending injury to Julius Randle has forced head coach Tom Thibodeau to play them both in the starting five.
In an ideal rotation, Anunoby starts while Hart plays behind him off the bench.
That leaves a small role for a third option, possibly alternating between the two forward spots as they each get rest.
Who better than a veteran three-point sharpshooter?
The only thing better than one 40-plus-percent three-point shooter is two. McDermott would make for a fourth for the Knicks.
DiVincenzo’s Season By the Numbers
After signing a four-year, $50-million deal last summer, DiVincenzo finished the 2023-2024 regular season averaging 15.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.3 steals per game.
He made 283 threes, good for third in the NBA. Only Stephen Curry and Luka Doncic made more.
Of all players to attempt more than 500 threes this season, DiVincenzo ranked sixth in percentage at 40.1-percent. If you trim the modifiers to 600 or more three-point attempts, he finished second behind Curry.
He set a few Knicks records a long the way.
In a March 25 win over the Detroit Pistons, DiVincenzo connected on 11 of 20 three-point attempts. 11 made threes put him past Evan Fournier and J.R. Smith for most made in a game in franchise history.
DiVincenzo finished his first campaign in New York with 283 made threes, passing Fournier again for most in a New York season.
Sending starter Donte DiVincenzo to the bench, only to bring Doug McDermott off the bench would give the New York Knicks one shooter who commands the respect of the defense at all times.