Many believe the New York Knicks’ search for a third big could lead them to ship out Deuce McBride. But trading him for another center or anyone else would be a mistake…unless that player is under contract beyond next season.
The logic behind shopping McBride makes some sense. He is entering the final year of his contract, after which he’ll be due for a raise from the $4 million he’s making right now. Not surprisingly, with owner James Dolan positively petrified of entering the second apron, we haven’t heard so much as a whisper about the team potentially extending him.
Plenty of smart people believe McBride will price himself out of New York if he hits the open market. They might be right.
Both Karl-Anthony Towns (player option) and Josh Hart (team option) could require new contracts before next season. Paying them amid financial constraints will take priority over Deuce. Plus, with so many guards on the roster, McBride’s defense and three-point volume fall shy of untouchable.
Add it all up, and there will be no escaping the speculation unless Deuce gets an extension. While that doesn’t mean the Knicks are consigned to jettisoning him, it’s clearly on the table. And in the event they do make that decision, the bar needs to be higher than simply just filling another need.
The Knicks should avoid soon-to-be free agents if they’re trading Deuce McBride
Swapping McBride for another player approaching free agency won’t solve any of the Knicks’ longer-term complications. They would still have to re-sign whomever they acquire.
Just as it will be difficult to retain McBride and duck the second apron, the same logic applies to anyone they acquire.
Take Moussa Diabate of the Charlotte Hornets as an example. He would be a perfect fit for New York’s roster, but he’s an unrestricted free agent at season’s end. The Knicks are already within $8 million of the second apron in 2027-28. And that’s with just nine players on the books. They’d be hard-pressed to keep Diabate and skirt the second apron even if Towns does his best impression of Jalen Brunson.
Sure, Diabate or another center like Jalen Smith or Luka Garza technically fills a bigger need than McBride. Relative to this year’s big-man market, they may also be more expensive to retain beyond next season.
Knowing that, the Knicks are better off keeping McBride than rolling the dice on a could-be coveted free-agent center. If they’re determined to move him, though, they should set their sights on someone like Dylan Cardwell, Ryan Kalkbrenner, Yang Hansen, et. al.
Any one of them would be a riskier acquisition than Diabate, but they all have at least one cost-controlled year left on their current contract. Given the Knicks’ rising operating costs, that certainty is incredibly valuable—and needs to be part of the calculus if they ever trade McBride.
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