If the New York Knicks trade Pacome Dadiet to make way for a Bruce Brown signing, they’ll be costing themselves optionality ahead of the 2027 NBA trade deadline. And it’s all because the third-year forward makes $500,000 more than his could-be replacement.
Following an injury to Drew Eubanks and a flurry of roster cuts, Brown and James Wiseman are effectively the only two vets who remain. The Knicks can afford to sign just one of them outright, and at this point, we know that it’s going to be Wiseman.
Still, as Ian Begley of SNY reiterates, New York is attempting to make room for Brown by offloading one of Dadiet or Tyler Kolek. While the latter clearly has more value, Dadiet is far from immovable. The Knicks already know how much it’ll cost to offload him—which is precisely why they shouldn’t.
Pacome Dadiet’s higher salary will come in handy at the trade deadline
Let’s say New York finds a team to take on Dadiet’s $2.9 million salary without sending back any money in return. His cap hit would be replaced by Brown’s $2.4 million veteran’s minimum contract, a difference of about $500,000 dollars.
Saving that money is initially a net positive for a team toeing tight lines beneath the second apron. If nothing else, it will allow the Knicks to fill out their 15th roster spot earlier, or convert Tyler Nickel to a standard contract sooner than expected.
But that $500,000 difference also complicates New York’s salary-matching mechanisms at the trade deadline. Since they are over the first apron, the Knicks cannot take back more money than they send out. Dadiet’s $2.9 million salary on its own allows them to bring in a more expensive player than Bruce Brown’s would-be number $2.4 million number.
Although these aren’t lucrative margins, they can have a huge impact. New York, for instance, could trade Dadiet and draft picks straight up for Moussa Diabate, one of the team’s most coveted targets. But because the Charlotte Hornets big man makes $2,461,462 this season, the same cannot be said for Brown, who would be on the books for $2,449,421.
Trading Dadiet to sign Brown creates yet another complication
The drawbacks don’t end there, either. While the Knicks could just combine Brown’s salary alongside another contract to make trade math work, they still have to worry about filling out the roster after pulling off a two-for-one deal.
Even more complicated than that, Dadiet can be shipped out at any point before the February 11 trade deadline. After Brown signs his contract, he won’t be trade eligible for three months. That still gives the Knicks time to move him before the February 11 cutoff, but it shrinks the window of time they have to strike a deal using his contract.
The same will go for Wiseman once he puts pen to paper. So unless New York is jettisoning a member of the starting unit, Deuce McBride and Tyler Kolek would be the only trade-eligible players on the roster until December 15.
This is particularly problematic for the Knicks. They should be looking to act early on the trade market to avoid competing against teams with more assets. Moving Dadiet to make room for Brown impacts their ability to do that.
There is always the chance that New York doesn’t need this extra time, or the additional $500,000 in salary-matching power. Then again, it might. And when the prize for short-circuiting that optionality is Bruce Brown, the Knicks are better off waiting to see whether a better opportunity emerges.
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