The New York Knicks have signed Malcolm Brogdon and Landry Shamet to contracts to compete for roster spots, but they completely messed up the situation. They already had solid guard depth on the roster, but rather than signing forwards to add necessary backups behind the likes of OG Anunoby, Josh Hart, and Mikal Bridges.
New York did bring in Garrison Matthews to compete alongside Brogdon and Shamet, but even he is more of a wing than a forward. Plus, while he’s an absolutely elite three-point shooter, which would be very valuable, he’s not the best defender, which could hurt the Knicks.
They may have had limited options, but the choices the Knicks made were absolutely wrong. And with how important depth is to winning a title, it's less than ideal that New York is heading in the wrong direction with theirs.
How did Knicks make wrong decisions?
Heading into next season, the core of New York’s roster is set. Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns are going to be leading the show, with Anunoby, Hart, Bridges, and Mitchell Robinson right behind them.
Miles McBride is also a staple of the rotation, and new addition Guerschon Yabusele should provide them with some solid backup center minutes (and perhaps power forward minutes, too).
However, past those guys, the rest of the Knicks’ roster is all guards and bigs. They have Jordan Clarkson, Tyler Kolek, Pacome Dadiet (who is on the taller side but not necessarily ready for NBA minutes), and Ariel Hukporti.
Anunoby, Hart, and Bridges sat toward the top of the league in minutes played under Tom Thibodeau, but there were always little spurts of annoyance about having to play so much. Now, with Mike Brown, they shouldn’t have to.
Unless the depth doesn’t support them enough…
There aren’t a ton of great options left on the market, but New York’s bench is extremely void of forward depth, especially depth that can help them out on the defensive end.
Outside of Yabusele, who spent 73% of his minutes at center last season, they don’t really have anyone else who can effectively play the three or four (barring a major leap from Dadiet).
Brogdon and Shamet are solid players, as is Matthews, but none truly fit what the Knicks’ bench is missing. Signing some younger forwards or even dipping into the overseas market to find forward depth would have been a smarter decision, especially for a training camp battle.
Now, the Knicks are going to be left with a guard-heavy bench as Hart, Anunoby, and Bridges are left to pick up the pieces at the forward position (again).