The dust has finally started to settle for the NY Knicks and their 2021 free agency.
New York’s moves included the additions of Evan Fournier and Kemba Walker while re-signing 2019-20 Knicks Derrick Rose, Alec Burks, and Nerlens Noel.
New York positioned themselves well for both next season and the future. While some may have not wanted the team to spend as much money and returning players, a lot of the new details that have emerged should reassure fans that the team has not only brought back a lot of talent, but they’ve also positioned themselves well for future flexibility.
NY Knicks: Contract details revealed for Rose, Burks, Noel
Reports about the final year of Evan Fournier’s contract being a team option had come out almost immediately after he signed with NY.
Yesterday, ESPN’s Zach Lowe confirmed that not only Evan Fournier, but Derrick Rose, Alec Burks, and Nerlens Noel all have team options on the final years of their deals.
Rose has a 3-year/43 million dollar contract
Burks has a 3-year/30 million dollar contract
Noel has a 3-year/32 million dollar contract
The team option on the final year of their deal is added flexibility for a few reasons. The most obvious being the NY Knicks being able to pivot from the contracts after 2 years.
Where the team options also become of value is if New York was willing to trade one of Burks, Rose, or Noel down the line.
If the Knicks would want to shop one of these players, they essentially would be treated as expiring contracts by next season. Expiring contracts have value no matter what the caliber of the player is.
New York has now essentially locked up the team that was the 4th seed in the Eastern Conference last year, except… they replaced Reggie Bullock with a much more dynamic, multi-faceted offensive player in Evan Fournier while also replacing Elfrid Payton with 4-time All-Star, Kemba Walker.
The NY Knicks have positioned themselves well with shrewd signings in what was a weaker free agency class.