Jeremy Sochan’s arrival has many wondering whether he will usurp rookie Mohamed Diawara in head coach Mike Brown’s rotation. While that is a legitimate subplot of the New York Knicks signing the 22-year-old combo forward, Kevin McCullar Jr. will be far more impacted by the move.
His chance at a standard contract just went up in smoke.
Selected with the No. 56 pick in the 2024 NBA draft, McCullar currently on a two-way deal. Though he’s used up just 19 of his 50 allotted games for the season, he won’t be eligible for the Knicks’ playoff roster unless he’s converted to a standard contract.
It initially looked like getting him on a regular deal would be a priority for New York. McCullar isn’t receiving nearly as many reps as Diawara, but he’s delivered extended flickers of defensive activity, and quality ball movement. Diehards won’t soon forget the 13-point, four-made-threes performance he churned out against the Atlanta Hawks just after Christmas.
Now, though, any chance McCullar had of cracking the roster appears to have gone out the window. And Sochan is the entire reason why.
The Knicks no longer have room for Kevin McCullar Jr. on the roster
Positional and functional overlap has little to do with McCullar getting almost-irreversibly squeezed out of the Knicks’ immediate plans. Even if they come with questionable jump-shooting range, you can never have too many combo wings.
This isn’t a financial issue anymore, either. New York brilliantly managed its cap sheet with a tour de force at the trade deadline. It has enough room underneath the second apron ($1.1 million) to put Sochan on a rest-of-season contract, and convert McCullar to a standard deal.
Roster space has become the primary issue. The Knicks don’t have any. Sochan takes up their 15th and final spot, which effectively leaves KMJ out in the cold.
Unless…
New York could still make room for McCullar
New York could create a roster spot by waiving or buying out a player, and then convert McCullar’s contract. Just don’t hold your breath for that to happen.
Truly dispensable players are hard to come by in the Big Apple. Pacome Dadiet is the easy callout, but the Knicks can’t afford to waive him when he’s guaranteed money for next season. The same goes for Tyler Kolek, who’s also too intriguing to just jettison.
Ariel Hukporti is on an expiring contract, but he’s a no-go as well. Unless New York plans to use Sochan at the 5, Hukporti is its only viable center behind Mitchell Robinson and Karl-Anthony Towns. Getting rid of Landry Shamet is a non-starter. The Knicks need to keep him beyond this season.
Jordan Clarkson is the lone possibility. Mike Brown has made it clear he’ll be behind Shamet, Deuce McBride, and new arrival Jose Alvarado when everyone’s healthy. Clarkson might prefer the chance to seek out a bigger role.
Then again, with Deuce recovering from sports-hernia surgery and Kolek’s performance all over the place, the Knicks need every ounce of guard depth they can get. Buying out or waiving Clarkson is counterintuitive to that.
That ultimately leaves McCullar right where he was this time last year: with no plausible path to receiving a standard contract from New York, and his future beyond this season totally up in the air.