After losing in the second round of the playoffs for the second consecutive year, the offseason for the Knicks is here.
With the help of Yossi Gozlan, we’ll take a look at some of the decisions ahead for New York and the financial implications of those decisions...
OG ANUNOBY
Anunoby can sign a contract extension worth $117 million over four years on June 30 – the six-month anniversary of his trade to the Knicks. He has a player option for 2024-25. He needs to decide on that player option by June 24 and can only extend if he exercises the player option for next season.
You can probably take that option off the board for the Knicks as Anunoby is highly unlikely to pick up his option for next season.
He will likely decline that player option and become a free agent. The Knicks can ink Anunoby to a max deal of five years and $245 million, as Gozlan explains in his excellent breakdown here.
Gozlan uses recent deals for wings (Jerami Grant, Jayden McDaniels) as a reference for Anunoby’s next deal. He expects Anunoby’s deal to set the market for wings. I think it’s reasonable to expect Anunoby to get $35 million annually on his next contract.
If that number is eye-popping to you, remember that the NBA’s next TV rights deal will steadily increase the salary cap. "Because of a new television contract that begins in 2025-26, teams expect to see the cap increase annually by 10 percent," ESPN’s Bobby Marks notes in his excellent Knicks breakdown here.
As previously reported, members of the Philadelphia 76ers have seen Anunoby as an offseason target. Paul George is also a target for Philadelphia. But if the Sixers can’t get George, I could see them making a big offer to Anunoby – if for no other reason than it would force New York to match the money.
ISAIAH HARTENSTEIN
The Knicks have Hartenstein’s Early Bird rights. This allows them to exceed the salary cap to re-sign him. But it also restricts their offer to a specific amount. In this case, the Knicks can offer Hartenstein a four-year, $72.5 million contract.
Will Hartenstein get a larger offer elsewhere? The 76ers, Orlando Magic, Detroit Pistons, Oklahoma City Thunder, Toronto Raptors and Charlotte Hornets project to have sizable cap space this summer.
It’s worth noting that Orlando had significant interest in Hartenstein the last time he was a free agent. The Knicks obviously won the bid for Hartenstein that summer, but Orlando was aggressive. I don’t know if the Magic will prioritize the center position in free agency.
Hartenstein is among a small group of free agent centers this summer (Jonas Valančiūnas, Nic Claxton). Bringing Hartenstein back has been a priority for the Knicks. His re-signing was a factor included in their approach to extension negotiations with Immanuel Quickley. So, I would assume the Knicks and Hartenstein agree on a deal. New York can begin talking to Hartenstein after the NBA Finals.
Gozlan projects that signing Anunoby and Hartenstein will put New York in the luxury tax, potentially above the first apron.
This projection operates on the assumption that the Knicks do not bring back Precious Achiuwa and Alec Burks. Re-signing those players could put the Knicks near or above the restrictive second apron (Gozlan breaks down those restrictions in his video here.)