Getty Donte DiVincenzo #0 high fives Draymond Green #23 of the Golden State Warriors.
Josh Hart may get his wish to reunite him, Jalen Brunson and Donte DiVincenzo, another key member of the 2016 Villanova championship team, in New York.
The New York Knicks are interested in signing DiVincenzo when free agency begins on July 1, according to SNY’s Ian Begley.
“I’m told that several influential people with the Knicks are fans of the idea of adding Donte DiVincenzo to this roster in free agency. DiVincenzo is a free agent this summer. So that’s a name to keep an eye on,” Begley said in a video posted on Twitter.
DiVincenzo is unlikely to pick up his $4.7 million player option following a solid season with the Golden State Warriors. He has until June 29 to decide on his player option.
DiVincenzo bounced back from a left ankle injury and played a career-high 72 games while averaging 9.4 points per game on a career-high 39.7% from downtown on top of 4.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.3 steals as a spark plug off the Warriors’ bench.
Hart openly said in a Bleacher Report interview that he’s trying to recruit his former Villanova teammates, including DiVincenzo.
“Those [Villanova] guys in the league, I’m trying to get them to NY,” Hart told Bleacher Report’s Taylor Rooks in a one-on-one interview posted on June 5. “[Donte], that’s my guy. I was talking to him the other day.”
The Knicks have the $12.2 million non-taxpayer exception, which they could use to reunite DiVincenzo with Hart and Brunson.
Knicks, Clippers Have Had Contact About Paul George Trade
The Knicks have started to make their moves a few hours before Thursday night’s NBA Draft, with an eye on an eight-time All-Star wing to bolster their 47-win roster.
“The Knicks and Clippers have had contact about a potential Paul George trade, per SNY sources. It is unknown if Clippers are willing to move George,” SNY’s Ian Begley tweeted.
The Clippers have been trying to gauge George’s trade value, according to NBA insider Marc Stein.
“League sources tell The Stein Line that the LA Clippers have left various rival teams with the impression through their Draft Week conversations that they are, at a minimum, attempting to gauge Paul George’s trade value and, to hear some describe it, giving real consideration to the idea of disassembling the Kawhi Leonard/George tandem,” Stein wrote.
George, 33, has only two years left on his four-year, $176 million deal with a $48.7 million player option for the 2024-25 season.
Chris Paul Praises Jalen Brunson
Recently traded Chris Paul praised Knicks rising point guard Jalen Brunson on The Ryen Russillo Podcast.
“Jalen Brunson, that’s my man. Y’all so lucky to have Jalen here,” Paul said. “One year, I was traveling and wanted somebody to travel and work out with me. It was Rick Brunson. So Jalen was working out and training with me in eighth or ninth grade. Jalen has been nice for a long time. Y’all just know that. Y’all getting to see it now… He’s always had a brilliant basketball mind and him coming to New York gave him the opportunity to run the show.”
Paul was included in the Phoenix Suns–Washington Wizards‘ blockbuster Bradley Beal trade. He was re-routed on Thursday to the Warriors in a separate trade that sent Jordan Poole and draft assets to the Wizards, per multiple reports.