Mohamed Diawara may officially have the New York Knicks’ primary wing minutes off the bench on lock. If so inclined, he can thank Pacome Dadiet’s nonexistent trade value around the league. That not-so-little factoid may prevent New York from signing a training-camp invite who could infringe upon the sophomore’s place in the pecking order.
The Knicks currently only have enough room beneath the second apron to keep one of their many, many training camp invites. As Stefan Bondy of the New York Post noted, they would prefer to keep two names from a list that features John Konchar, James Wiseman, Ochai Agbaji, James Wiseman, Bruce Brown Jr., and Drew Eubanks. Going that route would require offloading Dadiet’s $2.9 million salary. According to Bondy, though, he “has no value” on the trade market.
This is a bummer for anyone hoping New York will get an extra crack at winning the 11th-hour free-agency game. On the bright side, it could force the Knicks to cast a greater vote of confidence in Diawara.
Mohamed Diawara stands alone...for now
Aside from Dadiet, Diawara is the only wing on New York’s bench who stands taller than 6’4”. Shamet is listed at 6’5”, but yours truly is skeptical. Even if his height is accurate, he’s not someone who can guard too far up the positional spectrum, or pitch in as a helper around the basket.
Unless Dadiet completely reinvents himself, Diawara alone checks that box. Much of that changes if the Knicks give a roster spot to Konchar, Agbaji, or Brown.
Konchar brings understated physicality, rebounding, and deterrence when rotating near the basket. Agbaji has always contested more shots at the basket than you realize, and has more meat on him than Shamet for bigger, burlier guard assignments. Brown is tiny and won’t provide much resistance around the basket, but he’s shown that he can defend 1 through 4 in the right matchups.
Signing any one of them threatens to knock Diawara down a peg or two inside the full-strength rotation. That becomes a non-issue if the Knicks give their 14th roster spot to Eubanks or Wiseman—which they now seem more likely to do.
The Knicks are unlikely to sign a wing if Dadiet stays put
Try as they might to convince us they’re comfortable going into the season with Karl-Anthony Towns and Andre Drummond as the only centers under contract, it’s tough to actually buy the idea. Surviving like that until the trade deadline would require pristine health, not to mention more minutes with OG Anunoby or Diawara himself manning the center spot. Impossible? No. Risky? Definitely.
All of which is why the Knicks may default to using their 14th spot on another center. If and when they do, Diawara’s importance to the rotation will remain intact. Dadiet isn’t beating him out for minutes, and though Mike Brown will favor Landry Shamet in smaller looks, Diawara’s size and length ensure he’ll be on course for fourth-wing minutes in plenty of matchups.
This says nothing of any injuries or rest nights that might crop up for Anunoby, Josh Hart, or for the first time ever, Mikal Bridges. So while getting stuck with Dadiet may not be New York’s ideal outcome, it would be a not-so-insignicant victory for the team’s best young prospect.
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