3 reasons why Knicks’ key offseason moves will pay off in 2022-23

2: Retaining and extending core pieces

Speaking of youth, the front office made sure to lock up two of the team’s most successful recent draft picks for the foreseeable future.

Mitchell Robinson re-signed with the team on a four-year, $60 million deal to remain the starting center back in July.

While his career has been a bit of a roller coaster, it’s worth noting that Robinson set a career-high in rebounding this past season (8.6) while also setting a career low in fouls per game (2.7). After rehabbing for the entire 2021 offseason, he should be back to continue his upward developmental trend as he’s had a fully healthy summer.

A couple of months after signing Robinson, after a series of potential trade talks with the Utah Jazz, the Knicks gave RJ Barrett a contract extension for four years, $107 million that could be worth up to $120 million in incentives.

Barrett has had an extremely solid career so far and has shown more than enough flashes to assume that there may be some All-Star appearances in his future. He’s improved his scoring average each season that he’s been in the league, putting up exactly 20 points last year.

He’s showcased his talent and upside countless times over the past season, such as his 46-point outburst against the Miami Heat and their top-five defense as well as his 36 point, eight rebound, five assist effort against the Los Angeles Lakers that earned him postgame praise from LeBron James himself.

At just 22 years old, his best basketball is almost certainly still ahead of him. Extending him was the correct move to make, and it’s even better considering that the front office didn’t need to hand out a max contract in order to do so.