Landry Shamet is officially the favorite to receive one of the New York Knicks' final two roster spots—a welcomed development that also comes at with one concession: Kevin McCullar Jr. is no longer in line to make the cut.
Speaking on an episode of The Putback podcast, SNY’s ever-informed Ian Begley said: “If I'm guessing, I'm guessing it ends up with Shamet getting one of those spots.” His prospective return fits the Knicks’ need for another perimeter player who can space the floor, and soak up minutes at the 2 and the 3. It is also only possible thanks to Guerschon Yabusele. By taking slightly less than the mini mid-level exception, he has enabled New York to sign another experienced veteran with the minimum.
Unfortunately, going this route requires the Knicks to use their 14th roster spot on a rookie-minimum deal. That will automatically rule out McCullar.
Cap expert explains why the Knicks can’t sign Kevin McCullar Jr.
Many wondered whether McCullar might qualify for a rookie minimum—or even the second-round exception—since he spent last season on a two-way contract. As Spotrac’s Keith Smith outlined while talking to Begley, this doesn’t fly under the collective bargaining agreement:
“So [McCullar] has a year of service now, because he was on a two-way contract last year. That would put him as a one-year service player, so it’s a slight bump. It’s a little over $2 million he would get. And then the big question that’s been asked is: ‘Can he do that second-round pick exception?’ I’m under the belief, and I confirmed this with a handful of people around the league, that he is not eligible to do that, because he’s already signed one contract. [The second-round exception] needs to be an initial contract signed by the player.”
This puts the Knicks in a bind with McCullar, who turned in some truly standout moments during his summer league stint. A minimum for players with one-year of service clocks in at $2.05 million. Add that to Shamet’s minimum salary, which is around $2.3 million, and you’re looking at roughly $4.4 million.
New York doesn’t have the wiggle room beneath the second apron to make this work. According to Spotrac, it currently sits $3.7 million below the threshold. That means the front office would need to shed around $700,000 in payroll while still maintaining a roster spot to make the math work on Shamet and McCullar. This is something they can realistically only do by turning Tyler Kolek or Pacome Dadiet into a cheaper player.
Here is why Kevin McCullar Jr. isn’t necessarily gone for good
On the semi-brightside, this doesn’t have to end McCullar’s Knicks tenure. He can sign another two-way contract.
As Smith also notes, New York’s front office knows how to navigate the CBA’s fine print, and optimize the allotted number of days the team can function without 14 players on the docket in order to save money. This opens the door for McCullar to join the official roster sometime after the season begins.
Adding him to the big club before the 2025-26 campaign kicks off, though? That’s officially off the table if Shamet is, in fact, on his way back.