After winning the 2026 NBA Championship, the New York Knicks lost both Mitchell Robinson and Ariel Hukporti in free agency. They signed Andre Drummond, who certainly impressed in his official Madison Square Garden debut against the Philadelphia 76ers, to help recover depth at the center position.
Governor James Dolan revealed on WFAN shortly after the title victory that the team would be treating the salary cap's second apron as a hard cap. That left the Knicks without the flexibility to competitively counter the Boston Celtics and 76ers for Robinson and Hukporti, respectively. It also seems to be a major part of why none of Karl-Anthony Towns, Josh Hart, or Miles McBride have new contracts with New York.
The Knicks spent the vast majority of the 2026 NBA offseason with just two centers before eventually bringing Tony Bradley, Drew Eubanks, and James Wiseman in to compete for a place on the roster. They technically had room for two players, but could only afford one veteran's minimum contract while staying under the second apron. Wiseman wound up winning the job, giving his summer a starkly different ending than he was expecting at first.
Going into the offseason, NBA agent Miško Ražnatović — who represents over 200 players globally including Nikola Jokić and Ivica Zubac — posted on Twitter that Wiseman would be continuing his career overseas. The idea for the pivot was presumably born from a lack of NBA interest in the center, who had been struggling with injuries and had little else to his name at the NBA level besides his status as a former No. 2 overall draft pick.
The Knicks are the league's reigning champions, hoping to win four more playoff series in the 2027 postseason and become the first repeat NBA title-winners in nine years. They'll hope not to have to rely on any of their third stringers throughout that process. The fact of the matter, though, is that they're currently an injury — or pair of foul-troubled big men — away from needing to rely on a fringe-NBA player in a meaningful role.
Knicks may need more than Towns, Drummond, and Wiseman at center
Just over three minutes into the Knicks' opening night action against the 76ers, Towns picked up his second foul of the game. It forced Mike Brown to substitute Drummond into the game, beginning what was an eventful Knicks debut at Madison Square Garden.
It was reported over the offseason that the Knicks were confident in Towns and Drummond as a duo of centers. The news indicated that New York wasn't planning on swinging any panic-trades for immediate help at the center position, but certainly didn't take away their ability to improve their depth under the basket on the trade market during the 2026-27 regular season.
Leon Rose's front office doesn't exactly have a plethora of draft picks at their disposal, but they may need to end up using however many second-round picks are necessary to find an upgrade. Unless they decide their best move with McBride is a trade, because they can't afford to extend him, they won't have many other paths to improving at center.
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