What about the players they added?:

New York signed some veterans to short-term deals, presumably to maintain financial flexibility. In signing Alec Burks, Nerlens Noel, Austin Rivers and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist to one-year deals, the Knicks kept their cap sheet clean for the summer of 2021. Per ESPN’s Bobby Marks, New York could have upwards of $50 million in space next offseason. That number could change, of course, if they decide to re-sign Frank Ntilikina and Dennis Smith Jr.

Some with the Knicks feel that in signing Burks, Noel and Rivers, they found three veteran players who can play multiple positions and are willing to accept different roles on a rebuilding club.

It will be interesting to see if/how Rivers, Burks and Noel impact the playing time of some of the young returning Knicks. (Same goes for Julius Randle and Toppin).

New York decided against sending out the assets required to trade for Westbrook or Paul. Instead, Rose and Co. brought Elfrid Payton back on a one-year deal. They had interest in Jeff Teague and D.J. Augustin. The club also did some homework on the point guard situation in New Orleans before the Pelicans completed their offseason trades, per SNY sources. But the Knicks ended up bringing back Payton. The competition for the starting point guard spot is open, though it’s safe to assume that Payton enters camp as the favorite to land the job.

If Payton is the starting point guard next season, the Knicks will have a lead guard who mostly defended well but is a career 29 percent 3-point shooter. Lineups with Payton and Randle lacked spacing, which is something Tom Thibodeau and the coaching staff will have to work around. (Thibodeau, by the way, turned out to be New York’s biggest offseason acquisition).

CAA/Kentucky Ties:

Including Kidd-Gilchrist, eight of the Knicks’ personnel decisions since the start of the NBA Draft involved adding a player who played at Kentucky or is represented by Creative Artists Agency.

CAA is Rose's former agency. Knicks assistant coach Kenny Payne was a top assistant at Kentucky. Rose and Wesley also have strong ties to the program.

By drafting or signing CAA players and players with Kentucky ties, the Knicks have left themselves open to criticism if the moves don't pan out. Just to reiterate my opinion: It doesn't make sense to critique Rose and the club for taking a player with a CAA or Kentucky connection until you have a chance to see how that player performs for the club.

If the Knicks' plan works and the club turns into a perennial contender, no one will care about a player’s agency or where he went to college. If things go sideways and New York’s acquisitions with CAA or Kentucky ties underperform, Rose’s personnel decisions around those players will be scrutinized.

Looking ahead:

You can expect the Knicks to explore using their remaining $18 million in cap space as relief for teams looking to shed salary. They have until the end of the season to reach the salary floor of $98 million. If they don’t reach that number, the players receive the difference in salary.

In the more immediate future, the club will have to waive two players on guaranteed contracts to give Kidd-Gilchrist – who is close with Wesley – a spot on the 15-man roster.

While they didn’t add significant talent to the 2020-21 roster, New York was able to add some draft capital. Thanks to a series of Ed Davis transactions, they’ve added four second-round picks since the draft. They have eight first-rounders and 11 second-round picks in the next six seasons.

And they have significant cap space moving forward. So New York still has the tools to add top players to the roster. But eventually, the cap space and draft picks have to turn into winning players.

That’s the challenge for Rose and his group, a challenge that most Knick execs have failed to meet over the past 20 years. Will things be different for Rose, Wesley and the new regime? We’ll find out more about that in the coming months.

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