Knicks Rumors: NY supposedly has interest in Bobby Portis reunion

The summer of 2019, AKA The Summer of the Power Forwards (and Elfrid Payton) was a weird one for the NY Knicks to say the least.

There weren’t a ton of bright spots that year as the fanbase thought we were getting Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving and instead ended up with Julius Randle, RJ Barrett, and Bobby Portis.

In retrospect, what the Knicks got out of that draft and free agency class wasn’t all that bad seeing how Randle just won Most Improved Player and made the All-NBA Second team this year…

And we now know what RJ Barrett is about and we love what we’ve all seen in his Sophomore campaign.

Should the Knicks bring Bobby Portis back in the offseason?

That said, the Knicks are in a much better position now than they were last year, so a reunion with Bobby Portis could make sense…I guess…

Marc Berman of the NY Post reported that the Knicks could have interest in a Portis reunion this offseason. The former Arkansas stretch big-man played well for NY but really came out of his shell this past season with the Bucks and was a tremendous 6th man for Milwaukee.

Berman said:

"The Knicks were open to having Portis return after they declined his option of $15 million for this season. But they had Julius Randle at power forward and were grooming rookie Obi Toppin.It’s conceivable the Knicks make a play for Portis this August at the right dollars, with Knicks GM Scott Perry still having a voice. Toppin is a work in progress, center Nerlens Noel is a free agent, and the Knicks are completely in win-now mode.Portis has said he turned down larger offers to come to Milwaukee, where he played 66 games. In his lone season with the Knicks, Portis also played all 66 games in a pandemic-shortened season, averaged 10.1 points, shot 45 percent and 35 percent from 3."

As Berman mentions, The Knicks weren’t ready to part ways with Portis after last season but not at the $15 million he was due to make.

Scott Perry was the GM who signed Portis originally and although he now has Leon Rose to answer to, he still has some say in the front office as far as what acquisitions to make.

Portis and Coach Thibs never crossed paths on the Bulls, in fact they just missed one another by one season, but Portis does fit the mold of a “Thibs guy” in a lot of ways.

My concern would be how much playing time he would actually be getting at the 4 altogether with Julius Randle eating up 35+ minutes there and then Obi Toppin getting around 12-15 minutes per game, most of which is played at the power forward spot.

In all likelihood he would get the bulk of his playing time at the 5 depending on what happens with the Knicks’ center situation this offseason.

The reunion would depend heavily on what happens with Mitchell Robinson and if he’s signed to an extension, whether or not the Knicks bring Nerlens Noel back, and if Obi Toppin is traded.

I personally wouldn’t be opposed to Bobby Portis coming back if the price is right, but a number of different dominos would have to fall before that would become a realistic option.

What say you, Knicks fam? Would you entertain a reunion with Bobby Portis?