The New York Knicks’ roster crunch is about to come.
With the deadline to finalize their 2025–26 roster fast approaching and just a few days to make a final call, the Knicks face hard choices after loading up on veteran free agents late in the summer without room to carry them all into the regular-season squad.
The Knicks decided to chase and ink a few veteran, experienced players this offseason to complement an already-strong starting five and provide depth to it, strengthening a supporting cast that has been the weak link of the roster in the past couple of seasons.
The three veterans competing for two roster spots are Malcolm Brogdon, Landry Shamet, and Garrison Matthews. Of those, at least one will necesarily have to go. Possibly, even if unlikely, the Knicks could also choose to add just one veteran to their final roster, letting the other two go.
“If the Knicks want to keep two of those three, trades involving Miles McBride, Pacome Dadiet, or Tyler Kolek are the most direct paths to do so.
“The Knicks also want to compete for an NBA championship this season. So every roster spot – and the decisions made around those spots – is crucial.” — SNY’s Ian Begley
Shamet and Brogdon have reportedly “held the edge” through training camp, and Mathews has also made his case because of his spacing and three-point-shooting prowess. However, keeping multiple veterans will force New York to sacrifice one or more younger players due to financial reasons.
“They will probably trade one of them to make room for two of Shamet, Brogdon, or Mathews,” Begley wrote.
Kris Pursiainen of ClutchPoints dropped an even tougher report for Knicks fans to swallow, revealing on Wednesday AM that the Knicks are finding little traction in the market for their fringe players.
“Aside from McBride, the market for their other young talent has been dry,” sources familiar with the situation told Pursiainen.
“New York is still weighing its options ahead of Saturday’s deadline. Cap flexibility in the near future is also playing a role in their decision-making.” — ClutchPoints’ Kris Pursiainen
McBride remains the lone player generating meaningful outside interest, but with the Knicks getting into the 2025-26 season with one and only one goal in mind—title or bust—it wouldn’t make much sense to get rid of Deuce to just add two of Shamet/Brogdon/Matthews.
“League sources tell ClutchPoints that rival teams have made ‘worthwhile’ offers for the 25-year-old guard, which is unsurprising.” — ClutchPoints’ Kris Pursiainen
McBride averaged 9.5 points and 2.9 assists per game last season while shooting 38.6 percent from deep, establishing himself as a reliable rotation piece. He seems more confident about his game and role with the team this season, judging by his preseason outings, so it’s reasonable to expect those numbers to go up a notch this year.
Trading McBride, however, would require serious hesitation about his long-term future in New York, something the Knicks don’t believe is the case, or at least has not been reported anywhere.
“One source familiar with New York’s situation said that for the team to want to deal McBride, they’d need to have serious doubt that they could agree to a second extension with their 2021 draft pick.” — ClutchPoints’ Kris Pursiainen
The Knicks have until Saturday to cut any player to waive a player on a non-guaranteed contract and not incur a salary-cap charge. Then, the franchise will need to submit the final cap-compliant roster by Monday at 5 p.m. ET.