NBA free agency is widely viewed in an unrealistic way, with too many immediate and passionate opinions. It’s understandable that these snap judgments are overblown, considering the national media’s demand for soundbites to consume. In reality, the implications of each signing and draft pick take years to play out. And many have a butterfly effect, affecting other potential free agents or prospects.
The above assessment is as true for the New York Knicks as it is for any team. New York acquired young star Mikal Bridges, re-signed versatile OG Anunoby, lost starting center Isaiah Hartenstein to the Oklahoma City Thunder, and drafted a handful of players. Despite having a great offseason, there is still one huge mistake made by the Knicks’ front office. And, frankly, it could have been avoided. Ultimately, the Knicks’ biggest mistake was not making sure there was an established backup center on their roster.
Leon Rose’s mistakes on Isaiah Hartenstein
Leon Rose has a strong track record of deliberate signings and moves as Knicks CEO. He waited patiently to sign Jalen Brunson in what now looks like a bargain in 2022, wisely traded Cam Reddish and draft capital for Josh Hart, and smartly traded Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett for Anunoby just before extensions were required for Quickley and Barrett. And so on.
But good executives make mistakes. With that in mind, the Knicks’ center rotation was among the best in the league heading into 2024-25, or so it seemed. Hartenstein and Mitchell Robinson complemented each other perfectly. The only problem had to do with Hartenstein’s contract.
Rose’s first mistake was signing Hartenstein to a two-year deal in 2022. That meant New York didn’t own all of his sell-rights. As a result, the Knicks were limited in how much they could offer. And unfortunately, they were aggressively outbid by the Thunder.
To be fair, no one knew Hartenstein would develop the way he did. But just a few weeks ago, it seemed like Rose was acting as if Hartenstein was going to re-sign with the Knicks. No matter what Hartenstein said he wanted, what was clear was that it was coming. The rumors about Oklahoma City were already well-established before free agency. And Rose didn’t prioritize signing or drafting a backup center.
Knicks’ Rose was not included in the 2024 NBA Draft
First, let’s look at the draft. Rose and the Knicks passed on the opportunity to select DaRon Holmes II (Dayton), who was selected at No. 22. Could New York have moved up to No. 22 by picking No. 25 and No. 26? It seems so. After all, Holmes was traded for the 28th pick, the 56th pick and two future second-round picks. But the Knicks may have dodged a bullet by not pursuing Holmes, as he suffered a torn Achilles and could miss the entire 2024-25 season.
But there were other centers available in the draft. Specifically, Jonathan Mogbo (San Francisco, 31st overall) — who was linked to the Knicks before the draft — and Kyle Filipowski (Duke, 32nd overall) were both available. True, New York would have had to use the 25th or 26th pick to acquire either of them. And that means the resulting deal for the 34th pick, which became Tyler Kolek (Marquette), wouldn’t have been New York’s. But if the Knicks felt that strongly about Kolek, they could have simply taken a center at No. 25 and taken Kolek at No. 26.
And then he missed out on free agency, too.
But with the draft in the rearview mirror, there was still free agency to fill the backup center spot. And many fans felt that was the priority. But unfortunately, the early days of free agency came and went, and no backup center appeared in New York. The Knicks saw Andre Drummond sign with the Philadelphia 76ers, Jonas Valanciunas sign with the Washington Wizards, Goga Bitadze and Moritz Wagner re-sign with the Orlando Magic, and Cody Zeller sign with the Atlanta Hawks.
There are still options out there, like JaVale McGee, Tristan Thompson, Omer Yurtseven, Chimezie Mets and Bizmack Biyomboo, but none of them will have the impact of Hartenstein. Although, to be fair, the five players mentioned above probably won’t either.
Now for the good news. This mistake can still be corrected before it has any ill effects. As long as the Knicks have a capable backup center on their roster for opening night, all is forgiven. And it’s important to remember that the Knicks might not need as capable a backup center next season as they have in the recent past. Why? Because they’ve covered other roster needs. Specifically, their dream acquisition of Mikal Bridges will partner with Anunoby to further limit easy baskets from opposing forwards. The impact of that is hard to measure without seeing him in action.
Still, the idea that this problem could have been solved is frustrating. New York has been waiting too long to become relevant again and is too close to losing ground now, especially when it just made arguably the biggest acquisition of the offseason.
Whatever your opinion on the matter, we all have to wait until October to truly evaluate what this Knicks team can do this season (and beyond). And so the waiting game continues.
