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NY Knicks: Ranking the 4 best signings by New York this offseason

By Mark Nilon

Aug 17, 2021; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks guards Kemba Walker (8) and Evan Fournier (13) pose for a photo during their introductory press conference at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 17, 2021; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks guards Kemba Walker (8) and Evan Fournier (13) pose for a photo during their introductory press conference at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /
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This summer, the NY Knicks were one of the more active teams on the free agency market, which was to be expected coming into the festivities what with their whopping $50 million (roughly) in cap space.

After having an unbelievably successful campaign in 2020-21, Leon Rose and co. viewed the offseason as a way to continue building off of their triumphs from the year that was.

Through a little over two months of their in-between period, they’ve seemingly done exactly what they set out to do by means of their copious amounts of transactions.

Today, we overlook their various wheeling and dealings thus far into the summer and rank what we believe to be the 4 best signings from fourth to first:

Best NY Knicks signing No. 4) Julius Randle’s $117 million extension

As we mentioned, the NY Knicks had themselves an unbelievably successful campaign and without question, the player that had the biggest impact on their Cinderella Story season was power forward, Julius Randle.

Coming into the year viewed by many as a potential trade asset what with the fact that they had selected a highly-touted player of the same position during the 2020 NBA Draft in Obi Toppin, the 26-year-old went about and had himself a career campaign.

Through 71 games played Randle posted averages of 24.1 points, 10.2 rebounds, and six assists on 45.6 percent shooting from the field and 41 percent shooting from deep.

With this production, the seventh-year pro went on to win the league’s Most Improved Player award, nabbed his first All-Star and All-NBA selections, helped guide the Knicks to their first postseason appearance since 2013, and finished eighth in the running for league MVP.

Because of his level of play, Randle could have waited till his current contract came to an end next summer and signed a lucrative contract potentially worth up to $200 million. Instead, however, he and the NY Knicks came to an agreement on a contract extension worth significantly less money at a total value of $117 million with a player option on the final season in 2025-26.

Banking on that his level of play was not a fluke, this deal allows the franchise to keep the MVP candidate in tow for the next several seasons at a relative steal — again, in comparison to his performance this past season — and, in turn, look to build a contender around their current cornerstone.