Knicks to Exercise Third-Year Option on Shane Larkin

A lackluster start to the preseason has not darkened point guard Shane Larkin’s future with the Knicks.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, the Knicks will pick up the third-year option on Larkin’s rookie contract. This option will guarantee the former Miami product $1.67 million during the 2015-16 NBA season.

Despite shooting a poor 4-13 thus far in the preseason, Larkin remains in a competition with Argentinian Pablo Prigioni for the back-up point guard role. It will be worth watching who winds up second fiddle to Jose Calderon, because Larkin and Prigioni’s styles of play could not be any more different. Larkin is young, quick, and eager to shoot the ball, while Prigioni slows-down the game, is almost always looking to pass, and is the Knicks oldest player, at 37 years young (Ironically, Prigioni only has more year of NBA experience than Larkin, but that is due to Prigioni spending the majority of his professional basketball career in Argentina).

For a while now, New York’s front office has made a cautious effort in limiting their 2015-16 payroll. With the hefty contracts of Amar’e Stoudemire and Andrea Bargnani coming off the books following this season, the Knicks have an opportunity to be major players in free agency next summer. Names that Jackson might consider signing are Grizzlies center Marc Gasol and Trail Blazers power forward LaMarcus Aldridge. Whether it be one of these All Stars or another front court player, the Knicks will need to sign a big-man regardless, because they currently have none under contract for next season.

In addition to Larkin, here are the Knicks players signed to [guaranteed] contracts for the 2o15-16 season. (Source: Basketball Reference)

Carmelo Anthony: $22,875,000

Jose Calderon: $7,402,812

J.R. Smith: $6,399,750 (*Player Option)

Pablo Prigioni: $1,734,572

Tim Hardaway, Jr.: $1,304,520 (*Team Option)

Cleanthony Early: $845,059

At such a modest salary, Larkin’s price tag of $1.67M should not be of concern to the Knicks. With or without him, the team will be more than flexible in recruiting free agents next summer, so if anything, the exercising of Larkin’s option only bodes good news for Phil Jackson and company. There is a good chance that Prigioni will hang it up after this season, so Larkin will be able to step into the back-up point guard role without much competition. He has endured a rough start to his brief NBA career, but hopefully by playing in a new system for a new team and coach, Larkin can display the enormous potential he had coming out of The U.

In his rookie campaign as a Maverick, Larkin posted averages of 2.8 points and 1.5 assists per game, in 10.2 minutes of action. He played only 48 games, though, but if he is able to wrestle the back-up job away from Prigs, Larkin will definitely see an increase in his nightly minutes this season. Shortly before the June draft, he was dealt to the Big Apple along with Calderon, Samuel Dalembert, and Wayne Ellington (who has since been waived) for Raymond Felton and Tyson Chandler.

Larkin has high standards to live up to, as the son of Hall-Of-Fame Reds shortstop Barry Larkin. The Knicks do not expect the younger Larkin to achieve even half the stardom as his father, though. All they need is for Larkin to effectively run the triangle offense, when called upon, and to stabilize a point guard position that was brutal last year with Felton. If he’s able to do so, the Knicks will have no doubt about keeping Larkin in their long-term plans.