Current New York Knicks players won’t publicly clamor for one of the team’s vast many (and impressive) training-camp fliers to make the final roster. Privately, however, Miles McBride should be rooting for Drew Eubanks, James Wiseman, or a to-be-determined big man to get the nod—so that he can catch a breather from
the incessant trade speculation that’s coming, if not already underway.
This has virtually nothing to do with the perimeter alternatives New York signed. In the event the Knicks don’t burn their 14th roster spot on a big, not one of Bruce Brown Jr., John Konchar, or Ochai Agbaji is fit to approximate McBride’s on-court value. Among other issues, they don’t promise anywhere near the same level of three-point volume or efficiency.
Still, New York needs a third center. The roster is currently a Karl-Anthony Towns rolled ankle away from frontcourt disaster. Andre Drummond is a solid pickup at the minimum, but there will be matchups and stretches in which he’s not fit to carry the primary-backup load—at both ends.
If the Knicks don’t sign an insurance at the 5, they’ll have to trade for it. And with Pacome Dadiet carrying little to no value, while also earning a $3 million salary that will be tougher to anchor deals on its own, McBride will be on the chopping block by default.
The Knicks signing a center would be a silent commitment to McBride
Realities of New York’s salary-cap situation in mind, moving Deuce for a backup big would be an outrageous maneuver. Squint hard enough, and you can see him earning Sixth Man of the Year buzz. Flipping him for someone who might be the backup to KAT’s backup is hardly a great use of resources.
McBride’s upcoming free agency isn’t a good enough argument in favor of jettisoning him, either. The amount of money he’ll command on the open market is overblown, and the NBA’s latest salary-cap projections gave the Knicks even more wiggle room to work under next year’s second apron.
This logic loses much of its meaning if Eubanks or Wiseman isn’t good enough to make the opening-night roster.
Even if the Knicks are comfortable rolling out more no-center units, the acquisition of a third big would remain fait accompli. And while they could hope to get lucky on the buyout market, prospective candidates like Brook Lopez or Deandre Ayton are neither saviors nor likely to exit their current situations before February’s trade deadline.
Handing a roster spot to Wiseman or Eubanks, then, wouldn’t just be about them.
Sure, they will have to perform up to snuff. New York isn’t about to squander end-of-roster opportunities with its steep payroll, and with a training-camp-deal success story like Landry Shamet on the roster. But the decision would also tacitly reiterate the organization’s interest in keeping (and maybe even extending) McBride. Because if one of them pans out, the big man search is potentially over.
This isn’t to say Deuce would be completely safe, but…
At the very least, Eubanks or Wiseman being good enough to make the roster buys the Knicks more time. They may still decide to pursue an upgrade to one of them or Drummond, but the urgency prior to February’s trade deadline wouldn’t be anywhere near as great.
That in turn gives the Leon Rose-led front office more runway to suss out and assess possible options. Maybe a big man who can be had for Dadiet’s salary and draft compensation who’s not available now will amble on to the chopping block. Or perhaps the midseason buyout market develops earlier than expected.
Any number of things could happen if Eubanks or Wiseman are among the team’s final additions—including, eventually, a Deuce McBride trade. The difference is, if the Knicks sign a center, they have a better chance of not needing to move or shop their prized reserve guard at all.
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