<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-tom-thibodeau-felt-betrayed-knicks-firing');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks rumors: Why Tom Thibodeau felt so ‘betrayed’ by firing');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Knicks-1.jpg"><figcaption>Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks rumors: Why Tom Thibodeau felt so ‘betrayed’ by firing</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-10-23T06:33:55-07:00">October 23rd, 6:33am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-10-23T06:33:55-07:00">October 23rd, 6:33am</time><address><a href="https://www.downeuclid.com">Evan Dammarell</a>Evan Dammarell is an award-winning sports journalist covering all things Cleveland, including the Cavs, right off the shores of Lake Erie. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>After leading the New York Knicks to their deepest playoff run in 25 years, Tom Thibodeau’s <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-process-replace-tom-thibodeau-shouldnt-confuse-fans">tenure with the Knicks ended</a> in a way that sources close to him described as both shocking and painful. According to The Athletic’s Ian O’Connor, the former Knicks head coach <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6738319/2025/10/22/james-dolan-fired-tom-thibodeau-risk-knicks-future/?source=athletic_user_shared_article_twitter&amp;smid=tw-share-ta" rel="noopener">felt betrayed</a> by people <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-leon-rose-championship-welcome-mike-brown">within the Knicks organization following his dismissal</a>.</p><p>“When you find out that people you helped either weren’t with you in the end or didn’t fight for you like you fought for them, that stings,” a source close to Thibodeau said to The Athletic.</p><p>Thibodeau spent five seasons in New York. He compiled a 226-174 record and guided the franchise to four playoff appearances. His leadership helped transform a team that had been a consistent underachiever into a legitimate contender. Their biggest highlight was last season’s trip to the Eastern Conference Finals. In that run, the Knicks eliminated the defending champion Boston Celtics. But they eventually fell to the Indiana Pacers in six games.</p><h2><b>Tension was building for the Knicks</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Knicks-2.jpg"><figcaption>Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Despite the success, internal tension reportedly began to build. Thibodeau was reportedly philosophically misaligned with members of the front office. That also included team president Leon Rose, who had previously shielded him from the scrutiny of owner James Dolan. By season’s end, Rose and others were “done stepping in front of the bus” for the coach.</p><p>Dolan, who attended player and staff exit interviews, reportedly influenced some to act in self-preservation, which further isolated Thibodeau. Though not without flaws, Thibodeau had been widely respected for helping players and assistants advance their careers and stabilize a once-dysfunctional franchise.</p><p>The decision to dismiss him came only a year after he signed a $30 million extension, marking a bold gamble for Dolan and the Knicks’ leadership. Veteran coach Mike Brown, formerly of the Cavaliers, Lakers, and Kings, was hired to take over a roster expected to contend again this season.</p><p>New York began its new era at Madison Square Garden with a win against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Regardless, Thibodeau’s firing may have closed one chapter of Knicks basketball. Now, the next one begins under the weight of lofty expectations and lingering questions about loyalty and leadership.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks rumors: Why Tom Thibodeau felt so ‘betrayed’ by firing

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-marc-stein-whispers-knicks-joe-mazzulla-interest');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Marc Stein reveals ‘whispers’ of Knicks’ Joe Mazzulla interest');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Marc-Stein-reveals-whispers-of-Knicks-Joe-Mazzulla-interest.jpg"><figcaption>© David Butler II-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Marc Stein reveals ‘whispers’ of Knicks’ Joe Mazzulla interest</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-10-21T07:49:38-07:00">October 21st, 7:49am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-10-21T07:49:38-07:00">October 21st, 7:49am</time><address><a>Preston Byers</a>Preston Byers is an experienced writer and journalist who currently serves as an associate editor for ClutchPoints and as a staff writer at The Vindicator and Tribune Chronicle, where he covers sports in the Mahoning Valley. Previously, Preston worked as an associate editor for Dot Esports and a site expert for FanSided's Union and Blue.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Boston Celtics</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>When the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-tom-thibodeau-fired-after-ecf-loss-vs-pacers">New York Knicks fired head coach Tom Thibodeau</a> earlier this year, they were swinging for the fences, so to speak, on his successor.</p><p>Although Thibodeau led the Knicks to their first Eastern Conference Finals berth in a quarter of a century, following a six-game series loss to the Indiana Pacers, Thibodeau was relieved of his duties. That set off a flurry of <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-process-replace-tom-thibodeau-shouldnt-confuse-fans">reported attempts by New York</a> to hire one of the top coaches in the NBA, including the Boston Celtics’ Joe Mazzulla, according to insider Marc Stein.</p><p>In addition to formally requesting (and being denied the chance) to interview the Dallas Mavericks’ Jason Kidd, Minnesota Timberwolves’ Chris Finch, Chicago Bulls’ Billy Donovan, Houston Rockets’ Ime Udoka, and Atlanta Hawks’ Quin Snyder, the Knicks considered Mazzulla, who won an NBA championship in his second year as a head coach in 2024, before settling on <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mike-brown-next-head-coach-tom-thibodeau-firing">recently fired Sacramento Kings coach Mike Brown.</a></p><p>“Yet it has also been whispered that the Knicks likely did some backchannel exploration to determine if there was any pathway to pursue Boston’s Joe Mazzulla. There obviously was not … and then the Celtics extended Mazzulla’s contract in August,” Stein <a href="https://open.substack.com/pub/marcstein/p/monday-best-one-more-burst-of-around?utm_campaign=post&amp;utm_medium=web" rel="noopener">wrote on his</a> newsletter, The Stein Line.</p><p>“Terms were not formally announced on Mazzulla’s new pact beyond the Celtics terming it a multiyear contract extension, but there is a belief in coaching circles the new deal is a six-year pact, along the lines of the six-year pact that current Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens initially signed to be Boston’s coach when he left the college game in July 2013.”</p><p>Mazzulla, among the youngest coaches in NBA history to win a championship, became the Celtics’ interim coach shortly before the 2022-23 season after then-Celtics head coach Ime Udoka was suspended by the team for the entire year. Although <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/boston-celtics/why-joe-mazzulla-nba-most-disrespected-head-coach-celtics-title">he was often maligned for his decision-making</a>, Boston won 57 games and earned the second seed in the Eastern Conference. Following wins against the Hawks and Philadelphia 76ers, the Celtics lost in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals to the Miami Heat.</p><p>The following year, after having the interim label removed, Mazzulla led the Celtics to a league-best 64 wins, the No. 1 seed in the East, and a swift run through the playoffs. With 16 wins in 19 games, the Celtics made quick work of their opponents, including Kidd and the Mavericks, to win the NBA championship.</p><p>Despite <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/boston-celtics/celtics-news-jaylen-brown-calls-out-insufferable-knicks-fans-playoff-loss">suffering an upset to the Knicks</a> in the second round this past spring, Mazzulla, only a few years removed from frequent criticism, has been touted as one of the best coaches in the NBA.</p><p>The Celtics open the season tomorrow night vs. the 76ers before making the short trip to New York to play the Knicks on Friday. Before their matchup with the Celtics, the Knicks host the Cleveland Cavaliers tomorrow night.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Marc Stein reveals ‘whispers’ of Knicks’ Joe Mazzulla interest

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-knicks-viewed-as-lebron-james-likeliest-destination-if-he-asks-for-lakers-trade');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Knicks viewed as LeBron James’ likeliest destination if he asks for Lakers trade');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/LeBron-James-Second-Decision-draws-Neymar-reaction.jpg"><figcaption>David Gonzales-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Knicks viewed as LeBron James’ likeliest destination if he asks for Lakers trade</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-10-17T07:52:54-07:00">October 17th, 7:52am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-10-17T07:52:54-07:00">October 17th, 7:52am</time><address><a>Zachary Weinberger</a>Zachary Weinberger joined ClutchPoints in October 2023 as a Miami Heat reporter as well as an Associate Editor. He graduated from Florida Atlantic University in 2022 after covering the school's athletic programs since his freshman year at the FAU University Press, where he was a Sports Editor and Editor-in-Chief. He then covered FAU Sports for The Palm Beach Post.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Los Angeles Lakers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>With <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/nba-rumors-lebron-james-not-connected-global-basketball-venture-maverick-carter-just-bailed-on">the rumors surrounding LeBron James</a> and his status with the Los Angeles Lakers this upcoming season, some analysts are theorizing about possible teams that could acquire him in a trade. As <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-lebron-james-injury-timeline-update-patient-approach">James is taking a patient approach with his injury</a> for the Lakers, Bobby Marks and Kevin O’Connor discuss the New York Knicks as a potential landing spot.</p><p>On O’Connor’s self-titled podcast, he would ask Marks, “If LeBron James asks out, his most likely destination is blank,” leading to the salary cap expert differentiating the results between the star being bought out or if it was through a trade. Via a trade, Marks’ <a href="https://x.com/KevinOConnor/status/1978910470892306531" rel="noopener">first team that he mentions</a> is the Knicks, mentioning the contracts they have like Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby, and Mikal Bridges.</p><p>“If it was a straight trade, you always think New York potentially, they do have the contracts, whether it be the Towns deal, OG, and Bridges, whatever that group, I think would probably lean back towards New York,” Marks said.</p><p>O’Connor would agree that New York would be the team to trade for James as it “makes sense” through such aspects as fit on the roster and for the salary.</p><p>“Yeah, I think I’d say the Knicks for sure,” O’Connor said. “I mean, I’d say Knicks number one, and then everybody else, if he were to be traded midseason, the Knicks makes sense, for salary purposes, for roster fit purposes, for what they could desire, what they feel like they might need to take a leap.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">If LeBron James asks out, his most likely destination is ________.<a href="https://twitter.com/BobbyMarks42?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BobbyMarks42</a> and I had the same answer for this fill in the blank. 🗽 <a href="https://t.co/x2tcC77YJc">https://t.co/x2tcC77YJc</a> <a href="https://t.co/98IcmoELiN">pic.twitter.com/98IcmoELiN</a></p><p>— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnor) <a href="https://twitter.com/KevinOConnor/status/1978910470892306531?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><h2><b>LeBron James could be the Knicks’ ‘savior”</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/LeBron-James-revisits-surprise-in-activity-he-hasnt-done-in-16-years-1.jpg"><figcaption>David Gonzales-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>While other analysts ponder how <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-brian-windhorst-hints-lebron-james-trade-la-struggles-early">realistic a Lakers trade involving James would be</a>, the Knicks do make a lot of sense to O’Connor, going from one huge franchise to the other. Besides the fit and salary, O’Connor would bring up the attention that it would bring, saying that James could be a “savior” for the team if he brought them to the NBA Finals.</p><p>“So I’d say the Knicks also for LeBron,” O’Connor said. “I mean, it’s Madison Square Garden. He’s always calling it his favorite arena; he could be a quote-unquote savior, you know, if he does help take them to a championship for the first time in decades. So there’s that with him as well. Can you imagine that, LeBron James traded midseason to the New York Knicks? If Shams drops that bomb, it might exceed the Luka trade last year.”</p><p>At any rate, it remains to be seen if James will be traded this season as Los Angeles opens the regular season on Oct. 21 against the Golden State Warriors.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Knicks viewed as LeBron James’ likeliest destination if he asks for Lakers trade

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mike-brown-wont-concentrate-giannis-antetokounmpo-trade-rumors');   ga('set', 'title', 'Why Mike Brown won’t ‘concentrate’ on Giannis Antetokounmpo-Knicks trade rumors');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Brown-speaks.jpg"><figcaption>Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Why Mike Brown won’t ‘concentrate’ on Giannis Antetokounmpo-Knicks trade rumors</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-10-07T12:09:06-07:00">October 7th, 12:09pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-10-07T12:09:06-07:00">October 7th, 12:09pm</time><address><a>Jackson Stone</a>Jackson Stone is a Mercer University alum from Atlanta who graduated with a BA in communications. A lifelong sports lover, Jackson is a die-hard fan of all Atlanta teams. He joined ClutchPoints in 2023.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>On Tuesday, ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania reported <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-exclusive-negotiating-window-giannis-antetokounmpo-trade-offseason">that the New York Knicks</a> and Milwaukee Bucks engaged in extensive trade talks surrounding <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/milwaukee-bucks/bucks-news-giannis-antetokounmpo-did-not-stutter-about-legacy">franchise cornerstone Giannis Antetokounmpo</a> this summer, which eventually fizzled out. The reports came just two weeks before the teams are slated to kick off their respective 2025-26 regular seasons.</p><p>Recently, Knicks head coach Mike Brown was asked about the rumors, and gave a <a href="https://x.com/IanBegley/status/1975622751739080778" rel="noopener">very diplomatic response.</a></p><p>“I don’t get into that stuff. We’re in a great spot right now. Our guys have been playing their tails off. They’re starting to pick what we’re doing defensively; offensively we’re getting a little bit more comfortable – especially trying to play fast,” said Brown, per Ian Begley of SNYtv on X, formerly Twitter. “That’s what I’m concentrating on now. Like I said, I love our guys and I think they’re starting to enjoy playing the way we’re trying to play on both ends.”</p><p>Indeed, even without Antetokounmpo, the Knicks still have one of the most talented rosters in the NBA, led by Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, and a host of strong wings who can defend and knock down perimeter jumpers.</p><h2><b>Can the Knicks win the East?</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Karl-Anthony-Towns.jpg"><figcaption>Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>This year, the New York Knicks figure to have as good a chance as they’ll ever get to win the Eastern Conference considering that Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton and Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum will both likely be out for the year due to injury.</p><p>This being the case, it makes sense that the Knicks would consider pushing all of their chips to the center of the table for a player like Antetokounmpo.</p><p>If a trade had gone down, the centerpiece for the Knicks likely would have been Karl-Anthony Towns, who remains their starting center heading into this season.</p><p>Recently, Brown broke down what makes him so impressive.</p><p>“KAT’s an intelligent guy. He’s got a great feel for the game of basketball. He’s starting to get a good feel for what we’re doing, and anytime you have a great, talented player like that… he’s going to find a rhythm,” said Brown, per Knicks Videos on X.</p><p>The Knicks will kick off their season on October 22.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Why Mike Brown won’t ‘concentrate’ on Giannis Antetokounmpo-Knicks trade rumors

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-the-trade-conversations-having-fix-roster-crunch');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks rumors: The trade conversations Knicks are having to fix roster crunch');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Knicks-head-coach-Mike-Brown.jpg"><figcaption>Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks rumors: The trade conversations Knicks are having to fix roster crunch</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-10-01T13:36:52-07:00">October 1st, 1:36pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-10-01T13:36:52-07:00">October 1st, 1:36pm</time><address><a>Josue Pavon</a>Josue Pavon is an Associate Editor and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat writer for ClutchPoints. He started his career as a credentialed media member writing about the Boston Celtics for WEEI.com in Boston, where he grew into a local on-camera NBA reporter and podcast host for CLNS Media. Alongside the Celtics radio broadcaster and two-time NBA champion Cedric Maxwell, Josue is the co-host of the Cedric Maxwell podcast.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Amid reports suggesting the New York <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-malcolm-brogdon-landry-shamet-expect-make-roster" rel="noopener">Knicks will sign Malcolm Brogdon and Landry Shamet</a> out of three players entering training camp on non-guaranteed deals with only one open roster spot, a trade is reportedly in the works to solve that problem. The depth, including Garrison Matthews, comes ahead of <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/game-changing-questions-knicks-must-answer-mike-brown-training-camp">2025-26 championship aspirations for head coach Mike Brown</a> and a Knicks team projected to return to the Eastern Conference Finals or further.</p><p>The Knicks have reportedly placed Pacome Dadiet <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6673506/2025/10/01/knicks-roster-spot-trade-landry-shamet-malcolm-brogdon/" rel="noopener">on the trade market</a> to make room for Brogdon and Shamet, according to The Athletic’s James Edwards III.</p><p>“New York is leaning toward keeping two of the aforementioned vets, with Shamet and Brogdon leading the way. In order to keep two veterans, though, the Knicks must make a trade. Per multiple league sources, the Knicks have had conversations with teams about Dadiet,” Edwards III reported. “The 20-year-old Frenchman is New York’s most intriguing prospect, even if he still has a way to go to be a regular contributor.</p><p>“For what it’s worth, I’ve also heard Dadiet has had a good summer behind the scenes and has made it harder for New York to potentially trade him,” Edwards III concluded.</p><p>Dadiet, the Knicks’ late first-round pick in the 2024 draft, spent most of last season playing for Westchester Knicks, New York’s G League affiliate. However, his dual position as a small forward/point guard makes for an intriguing development ahead of his sophomore year.</p><p>Still, the Knicks front office has remained focused on winning now, prioritizing ways to maximize talent while at the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference. Amid New York’s championship window, adding proven, talented guards, such as the 2023 Sixth Man of the Year, Brogdon, and bringing back Shamet appears to be the Knicks’ goal for the upcoming season.</p><h2><b>Mike Brown reacts to the Knicks’ open roster spot reports</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Knicks-guard-Landry-Shamet.jpg"><figcaption>Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Knicks head coach Mike Brown says his team is still far from deciding on the team’s final roster spot amid training camp. However, <a href="https://twitter.com/sny_knicks/status/1970938967261340156" rel="noopener">a potential deal is looming</a> around the Knicks, per SNY’s Ian Begley.</p><p>“Mike Brown said they still have a while before they need to make that decision, and the Knicks would need to trade someone in order to keep both Shamet and Brogdon because they’re right up against that second apron in the team’s salary. So, the Knicks would have to make a move if they want to keep both of those guys. But I do think if they both make it through camp and the preseason healthy, and they’re productive, that both of these guys will end up on that regular-season roster,” Begley reported.</p><p>The Knicks’ training camp started this week.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks rumors: The trade conversations Knicks are having to fix roster crunch

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-malcolm-brogdon-landry-shamet-expect-make-roster');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks rumors: Malcolm Brogdon, Landry Shamet ‘expect’ to make Knicks roster');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Knicks-Landry-Shamet-Malcolm-Brogdon.jpg"><figcaption>Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks rumors: Malcolm Brogdon, Landry Shamet ‘expect’ to make Knicks roster</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-09-24T14:27:20-07:00">September 24th, 2:27pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-09-24T16:51:10-07:00">September 24th, 4:51pm</time><address><a>Josue Pavon</a>Josue Pavon is an Associate Editor and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat writer for ClutchPoints. He started his career as a credentialed media member writing about the Boston Celtics for WEEI.com in Boston, where he grew into a local on-camera NBA reporter and podcast host for CLNS Media. Alongside the Celtics radio broadcaster and two-time NBA champion Cedric Maxwell, Josue is the co-host of the Cedric Maxwell podcast.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The New York Knicks could be making a trade before the regular season to make roster space for Malcolm Brogdon and Landry Shamet ahead of the upcoming season. With <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-insider-makes-trade-prediction-malcolm-brogdon-landry-shamet-dilemma">Brogdon and Shamet on non-guaranteed deals</a> and one open spot on the Knicks’ roster, trading away one player under contract is the only way to clear a path for New York to sign both veterans.</p><p>ClutchPoints’ Kris Pursiainen reported earlier in September that both <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/sources-knicks-malcolm-brogdon-landry-shamet-roster-crunch">Brogdon and Shamet elected to sign non-guaranteed deals</a> with New York over other offers in free agency, indicating confidence that space would be made for them on the team.</p><p>Knicks head coach Mike Brown wouldn’t confirm or deny the team’s plans for Brogdon and Shamet, but the belief around training camp is that <a href="https://twitter.com/sny_knicks/status/1970938967261340156" rel="noopener">both guards will end up making the roster</a> ahead of Opening Night, per SNY’s Ian Begley.</p><p>“No one’s ahead of anyone yet. That’s what Mike Brown said after a Knicks practice here in Westchester when he was asked about the one roster spot the Knicks have available, and the veterans on non-guaranteed deals that they have on the roster here,” Begley said. “Malcolm Brogdon, Landry Shamet, both signing non-guaranteed, veteran’s minimum deals. I think both have the expectation that they’re gonna be on this roster in the regular season.</p><p>“But Mike Brown said they still have a while before they need to make that decision and the Knicks would need to trade someone in order to keep both Shamet and Brogdon because they’re right up against that second apron in team’s salary. So, the Knicks would have to make a move if they want to keep both of those guys. But I do think if they both make it through camp and the preseason healthy, and they’re productive, that both of these guys will end up on that regular season roster,” Begley concluded.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Reporting from Knicks camp, <a href="https://twitter.com/IanBegley?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@IanBegley</a> discusses the final roster spot in regards to Malcolm Brogdon &amp; Landry Shamet, as well as Mike Brown not looking too far ahead into a starting 5 just yet <a href="https://t.co/lIkxeR2Q0v">pic.twitter.com/lIkxeR2Q0v</a></p><p>— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) <a href="https://twitter.com/sny_knicks/status/1970938967261340156?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 24, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><h2><b>Malcolm Brogdon, Landry Shamet expected to make Knicks roster</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Knicks-Landry-Shamet-1.jpg"><figcaption>Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Outside of the speculation surrounding Malcolm Brogdon and Landry Shamet making the roster after training camp and the preseason, new head coach Mike Brown says don’t <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-mitchell-robinson-josh-hart-starter-debate-practice-update">look too deep into the Knicks’ starting lineup</a> amidst training camp. Brown says the Knicks’ starting lineup is still undecided, while Brogdon and Shamet’s non-guarantaeed deals continue to be the talk around camp.</p><p>“The Knicks have signed Malcolm Brogdon and Landry Shamet to nonguaranteed contracts ahead of training camp. If they want to keep both players on the regular-season roster, they will have to trade one of their players signed to a traditional NBA deal,” Begley said. “They need to do this because their team salary cannot exceed the second apron this season.”</p><p>A trade of either Pacôme Dadiet or Miles McBride would clear enough cap space for the Knicks to sign both veterans.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks rumors: Malcolm Brogdon, Landry Shamet ‘expect’ to make Knicks roster

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-mitchell-robinson-josh-hart-starter-debate-practice-update');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks rumors: Mitchell Robinson, Josh Hart starter debate gets critical practice update');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Josh-Hart.jpg"><figcaption>Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks rumors: Mitchell Robinson, Josh Hart starter debate gets critical practice update</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-09-24T12:36:28-07:00">September 24th, 12:36pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-09-24T12:36:28-07:00">September 24th, 12:36pm</time><address><a>Rishav Bhat</a>Rishav is a seasoned NBA and sports journalist and editor with over seven years of experience working for reputed organizations. A novelist first and foremost, he has written three fiction books. His high threshold of knowledge combined with his writing skills gives him the ability to write uniquely insightful pieces across basketball, soccer, cricket, lawn tennis, eSports, and a variety of other sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mike-brown-cryptic-starting-lineup-playoffs">New York Knicks will enter a crucial season under new coach Mike Brown</a> after snagging their first conference finals appearance in 25 years last campaign. Now, with training camp underway, fans are determined to decipher what New York’s starting lineup might look like in the upcoming season.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-josh-hart-jokes-about-trade-benched">Josh Hart joked at Media Day about how he will ask for a trade</a> if he does not end up starting, and an image from Wednesday’s opening practice session has only made the questions louder. Hart was seen wearing a white jersey, which was worn by the team’s second unit during the practice, while Mitchell Robinson sported the first-team blue jersey that was also worn by the likes of Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Make what you will of opening practice jersey lineups. <a href="https://t.co/wqQZoTeQ4g">pic.twitter.com/wqQZoTeQ4g</a></p><p>— Steve Popper (@StevePopper) <a href="https://twitter.com/StevePopper/status/1970890957731020811?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 24, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>While that is enough to make fans suspect Hart is going to be reduced to the second unit, that does not seem to be the case. According to Knicks writer Steve Popper, Brown did not want people to read too much into <a href="https://x.com/StevePopper/status/1970904462584840430" rel="noopener">the jersey colors</a> that specific players were wearing during the practice. Brown noted that Robinson would be in the white jersey on Thursday and noted at Media Day that he would need to see how training camp played out before making a starting lineup decision.</p><p>The starting-five conundrum stems from KAT’s supposed fit alongside a more traditional center, such as Mitchell Robinson. Towns found consistent success playing at the 4-spot alongside center Rudy Gobert back during his time with the Minnesota Timberwolves.</p><p>A similar approach was taken by Tom Thibodeau late in the playoff series against the Indiana Pacers last season after Hart started most of the season and the playoffs. It allows KAT to focus on his offensive gifts while making up for his defensive shortcomings, with Robinson providing excellent rim protection.</p><p>As Brown said at Media Day, he’s going to take some time before making a final decision. Towns, Brunson, OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges are locks for the starting lineup, so the decision will likely come down to Hart and Robinson. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/josh-hart-nagging-finger-injury-throw-wrench-knicks-season">Hart is also nursing a nagging finger injury</a> that he plans to play through, but it’s unclear how that will impact him this season.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks rumors: Mitchell Robinson, Josh Hart starter debate gets critical practice update

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-karl-anthony-towns-disputes-rumored-finger-knee-procedures');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks’ Karl-Anthony Towns disputes rumored finger, knee procedures');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Karl-Anthony-Towns-at-Knicks-Media-Day.jpg"><figcaption> Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks’ Karl-Anthony Towns disputes rumored finger, knee procedures</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-09-23T08:10:14-07:00">September 23rd, 8:10am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-09-23T09:50:26-07:00">September 23rd, 9:50am</time><address><a>Jason Patt</a>Jason Patt started as an editor at ClutchPoints in 2018 and became the Editorial Director in 2022. He also co-hosts Cash Considerations: A Chicago Bulls Podcast for the Blue Wire Network.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>New York Knicks star <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-karl-anthony-towns-undergoes-procedures-playoff-injuries">Karl-Anthony Towns supposedly underwent procedures</a> over the summer to repair knee and finger injuries, according to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne. But now Towns is disputing the report at Knicks Media Day, <a href="https://x.com/FredKatz/status/1970492483730628668" rel="noopener">claiming that he did not</a>, in fact, have those procedures done, per The Athletic’s Fred Katz.</p><p>This disconnect seems odd, but perhaps the wording of Shelburne’s <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/45448458/sources-karl-anthony-towns-treated-knee-finger-injuries" rel="noopener">initial report could explain it?</a> The headline of her report says Towns was “treated” for the injuries, which were suffered during New York’s playoff run to the Eastern Conference Finals (finger against the Boston Celtics and knee against the Indiana Pacers). The first line of the story even says “Towns has undergone treatment,” though the word “procedures” is later used.</p><p>From Shelburne: “After the Knicks’ season ended with Saturday’s Game 6 loss to the Pacers, Towns had the injuries reexamined and chose to immediately have procedures so he would have the most time possible to recover before next season, sources said.”</p><p>Maybe Towns didn’t actually undergo any surgical procedures that required him to go under the knife but still did get some kind of special treatment for the injuries? Maybe he received some kind of injections?</p><p>It’s unclear right now, and we’ll surely get some kind of clarification on this in the future. Either way, it seems Towns is in good spirits as New York gets ready to embark on another season with high expectations.</p><h2>KAT, Knicks move forward with Mike Brown</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/New-York-Knicks-2025-NBA-free-agency-grades-for-every-signing.jpg"><figcaption>Stephen Lew-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>It’s a season of change, though, with <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mike-brown-next-head-coach-tom-thibodeau-firing">Mike Brown in place of Tom Thibodeau as head coach</a>. The Knicks fired Thibodeau despite their deepest playoff run since 2000, and they believe Brown is the man who will finally lead them back to the NBA Finals.</p><p>New York will need a healthy Karl-Anthony Towns to do it, so hopefully none of these injuries actually linger. Towns averaged 24.4 points, a career-high 12.8 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 35.0 minutes per game last season. His numbers did dip a bit in the playoffs (21.4/11.6/1.3), but he didn’t miss a game in the postseason despite the injuries.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks’ Karl-Anthony Towns disputes rumored finger, knee procedures

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-insider-makes-trade-prediction-malcolm-brogdon-landry-shamet-dilemma');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks rumors: Insider makes trade prediction amid Malcolm Brogdon, Landry Shamet dilemma');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Knicks-Malcolm-Brogdon-Landry-Shamet.jpg"><figcaption>Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks rumors: Insider makes trade prediction amid Malcolm Brogdon, Landry Shamet dilemma</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-09-17T10:53:11-07:00">September 17th, 10:53am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-09-17T10:53:11-07:00">September 17th, 10:53am</time><address><a>Josue Pavon</a>Josue Pavon is an Associate Editor and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat writer for ClutchPoints. He started his career as a credentialed media member writing about the Boston Celtics for WEEI.com in Boston, where he grew into a local on-camera NBA reporter and podcast host for CLNS Media. Alongside the Celtics radio broadcaster and two-time NBA champion Cedric Maxwell, Josue is the co-host of the Cedric Maxwell podcast.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Detroit Pistons</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>In an effort to keep veterans Malcolm Brogdon and Landry Shamet in the backcourt, a potential trade could be on the horizon for the New York Knicks. For the first time in 20 years, they reached the Eastern Conference Finals last season, and could making a return next season. For many, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-jalen-brunson-sends-warning-title-bust-season">Knicks’ title-or-bust season is 2025-26</a>.</p><p>However, keeping Brogdon and Shamet would mean the Knicks <a href="https://sny.tv/articles/knicks-mailbag-9-17-25" rel="noopener">have to make a trade</a> ahead of the regular season, as SNY reporter Ian Begley noted.</p><p>“The Knicks have signed Malcolm Brogdon and Landry Shamet to nonguaranteed contracts ahead of training camp. If they want to keep both players on the regular-season roster, they will have to trade one of their players signed to a traditional NBA deal,” Begley said. “They need to do this because their team salary cannot exceed the second apron this season. There are many different trade routes the Knicks can take to keep both Brogdon and Shamet. A trade of either Pacôme Dadiet or Miles McBride would clear enough cap space to sign both veterans.</p><p>“The Knicks can also trade Tyler Kolek and have enough space under the second apron to sign both Brogdon and Shamet.”</p><p>The defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder proved that depth is key when it comes to competing for a championship. The same could be said about the 2024 champion Celtics, who will enter the upcoming season without All-Star Jayson Tatum, clearing a path for their division rivals, the Knicks, to return to the Eastern Conference Finals.</p><p>“Trading Kolek and signing both vets would leave New York just $44,000 under the second apron,” Begley added. “Unless they made another trade, in this scenario, the Knicks wouldn’t be able to sign another veteran on a pro-rated contract during the season. New York used this approach last season when signing veteran P.J. Tucker in March.”</p><h2><b>Busy offseason keeps Knicks below NBA’s second tax apron</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Knicks-Landry-Shamet.jpg"><figcaption>Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/sources-knicks-malcolm-brogdon-landry-shamet-roster-crunch">Knicks signed veterans Malcolm Brogdon and Landry Shamet</a> alongside Garrison Mathews on Thursday and Friday. All three agreed to non-guaranteed deals, giving the Knicks ample time to part ways with one of their players under contract.</p><p>After Guershon Yabusele left $185,000 on the table for his first season with the Knicks, it gave the Knicks the flexibility to sign free agents before making a move that can <a href="https://www.thirdapron.com/p/the-knicks-final-roster-spots-and" rel="noopener">give them the cap space</a> to sign Brogdan and Shamet to standard deals, as cap analyst Yossi Gozlan reported per The Third Apron.</p><p>“That plan would leave the Knicks with just under $150,000 in space below the second apron,” Gozlan said. “That is virtually no breathing room to make additional moves in the season.”</p><p>However, the Knicks would still have a deep rotation throughout 2025-26.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks rumors: Insider makes trade prediction amid Malcolm Brogdon, Landry Shamet dilemma

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-carmelo-anthony-jersey-retired-hall-of-fame');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks rumors: Will Carmelo Anthony’s jersey be retired after Hall of Fame induction?');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/CARMELO-ANTHONY-CATCHES-HIS-BREATH.jpg"><figcaption>Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks rumors: Will Carmelo Anthony’s jersey be retired after Hall of Fame induction?</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-09-17T10:10:33-07:00">September 17th, 10:10am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-09-17T10:10:33-07:00">September 17th, 10:10am</time><address><a>Zachary Draves</a>Zachary Draves is a sportswriter and broadcaster based in the Quad Cities of Illinois and Iowa. Zachary covers a variety of different sports as well as sports history, sport and society, and sport and culture. He is also a professor of sociology.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Earlier this month, Carmelo Anthony was <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/nba-news-carmelo-anthony-gets-brutally-honest-hall-of-fame-career">inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame</a>. But is he on the cusp of getting an additional honor?</p><p>On Wednesday, a question <a href="https://sny.tv/articles/knicks-mailbag-9-17-25" rel="noopener">was asked</a> about the possibility of Anthony getting his jersey retired by the Knicks, per Ian Begley of SNY.TV.</p><p>The question “Do you think Melo’s number will get retired by the Knicks?” was posed by a fan @NyCitee on X.</p><p>“I can’t tell you that I know with 100 percent certainty that the Knicks will retire Carmelo Anthony’s number,” Begley said.</p><p>“When Anthony retired, I know there was strong support internally within MSG to retire Anthony’s number. In checking around about this over the past couple of weeks, I can say that there remains strong support internally for retiring the number.</p><p>Later on, Begley said that it is not officially in the cards as of yet. Ultimately, it will be up to Knicks owner James Dolan.</p><p>“Again, I can’t say with 100 percent certainty that the Knicks will retire his number,” he said. “But the internal discussions about the topic have continued in recent weeks. The decision to retire — or not retire — Anthony’s number will ultimately be made by owner James Dolan.”</p><p>From 2011-2017, Anthony played with the Knicks. Altogether, he averaged 24.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 3.2 assists.</p><p>During that stretch, he helped elevate the Knicks organization. He joined the likes of J.R. Smith, Amar’e Stoudemire, and Iman Shumpert.</p><p>The Knicks made three playoff appearances. In 2011, they lost in the first round to the Boston Celtics.  The following year, they lost in the first round to the Miami Heat. Then in the next season, the Knicks lost to the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.</p><p>At one point, Anthony said he would have <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/carmelo-anthony-makes-surprising-knicks-retirement-admission">retired had the Knicks won</a>.</p><h2><b>The Knicks players who have their jerseys retired</b></h2><p>If Anthony were to a have his jersey retired, he would join some of the greats of the game who played at Madison Square Garden.</p><p>So far, the Knicks have ten players whose number is hoisted to the rafters at the World’s Most Famous Arena. They are Walt Frazier (#10), Earl Monroe (#15), Willis Reed (#19), Dave DeBusschere (#22), Bill Bradley (#24), and Patrick Ewing (#33), and Dick Barnett (#12).</p><p>Former coach Red Holzman has the #613 retired, based on the number of wins as Knicks coach.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks rumors: Will Carmelo Anthony’s jersey be retired after Hall of Fame induction?

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-ny-eyeing-reunion-high-flying-lottery-pick');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks rumors: NY eyeing reunion with high-flying former lottery pick');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/NY-eyeing-reunion-with-high-flying-former-lottery-pick.jpg"></figure><h1>Knicks rumors: NY eyeing reunion with high-flying former lottery pick</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-09-15T05:47:14-07:00">September 15th, 5:47am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-09-15T05:47:14-07:00">September 15th, 5:47am</time><address><a>Kris Pursiainen</a>Kris Pursiainen is an Associate Editor for all sports based in the NJ/NYC area. Kris brings several years of experience reporting on and writing about professional teams to the table. With experience all over the country as a New York Knicks, New York Jets, New York Mets, Super Bowl LVIII, and Big East beat reporter, Kris has been breaking news and reporting on the NBA, NFL, MLB, and college basketball landscapes for years. Kris is a proud graduate of Fordham University.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The New York <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/nba-news-ex-mavericks-knicks-guard-dennis-smith-jr-set-to-attempt-nba-return">Knicks are working out Dennis Smith Jr.</a> this week as the former lottery pick is looking <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/09/14/sports/knicks-working-out-dennis-smith-jr-as-guard-eyes-nba-comeback/?utm_campaign=iphone_nyp&amp;utm_source=twitter&amp;utm_medium=social" rel="noopener">to make a return</a> to the NBA, per Stefan Bondy of the New York Post. Smith Jr. was the ninth overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks. He played in New York from 2019 until the team <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/pistons-news-dennis-smith-jr-reacts-derrick-rose-knicks-trade">traded him to the Pistons for Derrick Rose</a> in 2021.</p><p>The seven-year NBA veteran worked out for both the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/brooklyn-nets/nets-news-brooklyn-guard-eyeing-nba-comeback-76ers-mavericks">Mavericks and Philadelphia 76ers earlier this offseason</a>, taking part in each teams’ June veteran minicamp. He more recently worked out with Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young. A video shared on Twitter showed the two exchanging buckets, and words, in a one-on-one setting.</p><p>Young <a href="https://x.com/TheTraeYoung/status/1965819574559060444" rel="noopener">replied to the post</a> saying that Smith Jr. “should be in the league still.” The four-time NBA All-Star added that the two were “competing” in response to the post’s claim that they “got into it.”</p><p>Smith Jr. has played for six different franchises, most recently the Brooklyn Nets in 2024. He played 18.9 minutes per game in 56 games, averaging 6.6 points and 3.6 assists on 43.5% shooting. His best trait was his point-of-attack defense.</p><h2><b>2 former Lakers big men set to work out for Knicks this week</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/knicks-rumors-ny-eyeing-reunion-high-flying-lottery-pick.jpg"><figcaption>Benny Sieu-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The Knicks are also working out Alex Len and Trey Jemison III, according to Bondy. The 32-year-old Len was drafted fifth overall in 2013 by the Phoenix Suns. He last played for the Los Angeles Lakers in 2025, averaging 2.2 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 0.9 turnovers in 10 games. The Ukranian big man also played briefly in two Laker playoff games.</p><p>Jemison III has played 63 NBA games and made 14 career starts. The 25-year-old big recorded all 14 playing for the Memphis Grizzlies in the 2023-24 season. The injury-riddled Grizzlies signed Jemison III to a 10-day contract and made him a starter approximately a week later.</p><p>One of the big man’s 14 starts included a career-high 12-point performance against the Knicks. Jemison III also had six rebounds in the game. Like Len, though, he most recently played for the Lakers in 2025.</p><p>NBA teams are able to bring 21 players into training camp ahead of the 2026 campaign. The Knicks signed three veterans to non-guaranteed contracts last week, with ClutchPoints reporting that <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/sources-knicks-malcolm-brogdon-landry-shamet-roster-crunch">both Landry Shamet and Malcolm Brogdon</a> opted to sign with New York over other teams. The third veteran was 28-year-old sharpshooter Garrison Mathews, who last played for the Hawks in the 2025 season.</p><p>Between the 12 players the Knicks currently have under contract, the three non-guaranteed contracts, and <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-ny-drafts-intriguing-french-prospect-clippers-trade">rookie Mohamed Diawara</a>, they have just five spots remaining. Whether or not their reported interest in Smith Jr., Len, Jemison III, or center Thomas Bryant translate to camp invites remains to be seen.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks rumors: NY eyeing reunion with high-flying former lottery pick

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-new-york-insiders-ben-simmons-contract');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks rumors: New York insiders deny report Ben Simmons was offered contract');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Ben-Simmons.jpg"><figcaption>Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks rumors: New York insiders deny report Ben Simmons was offered contract</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-09-09T10:20:33-07:00">September 9th, 10:20am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-09-09T10:20:33-07:00">September 9th, 10:20am</time><address><a>Rishav Bhat</a>Rishav is a seasoned NBA and sports journalist and editor with over seven years of experience working for reputed organizations. A novelist first and foremost, he has written three fiction books. His high threshold of knowledge combined with his writing skills gives him the ability to write uniquely insightful pieces across basketball, soccer, cricket, lawn tennis, eSports, and a variety of other sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The New York Knicks have one final spot left on their 15-man roster for the new season and multiple names have been linked in recent days. Earlier this week, Marc Stein of The Stein Line had reported that New York offered a one-year contract to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-did-new-york-offer-ben-simmons-contract">none other than three-time All-Star Ben Simmons.</a></p><p>However, according to <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/monday-best-the-latest-nba-trade?utm_campaign=email-post&amp;r=3shtjf&amp;utm_source=substack&amp;utm_medium=email" rel="noopener">the report</a>, the Australian had rejected the deal after previously being reported to be looking for a contract above the minimum. This has since been said to be untrue, with multiple Knicks insiders claiming that the franchise never made <a href="https://x.com/IanBegley/status/1965189562172669960" rel="noopener">a formal offer</a>.</p><p>“Knicks have had dialogue with free agent Ben Simmons over the course of the offseason and certainly have had interest in him, but club has never made a formal offer to Simmons, per league sources,” Ian Begley wrote on X.</p><p>The insider also claimed that Malcolm Brogdon and Landry Shamet were instead the names the Knicks have considered for that final roster spot. Last season, Simmons averaged 5.0, 5.6 rebounds and 4.7 assists across 51 appearances for the Nets and the Clippers.</p><p>He was paid just north of a million as part of the deal he signed with the Clippers after Brooklyn had previously bought out the remainder of his contract that he signed with the Philadelphia 76ers in February 2025. Now, reports even claim that the 2016 NBA draft’s No. 1 pick is reportedly considering his NBA future.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-news-ben-simmons-agent-drops-him-retirement-rumors">Simmons was reported to have been dropped by his agent</a> Bernie Lee earlier this month. Brian Windhorst had noted that the 29-year-old may have to settle for a non-guaranteed contract.</p><p>While Simmons is undoubtedly no longer the same player, the Knicks are still in the market for a bench scorer. They have worked in the offseason to improve their depth already with the additions of Guerschon Yabusele and Jordan Clarkson. However, Simmons is very unlikely to join that list, and looks likely to enter training camp without signing with an NBA team.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks rumors: New York insiders deny report Ben Simmons was offered contract

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-did-new-york-offer-ben-simmons-contract');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks rumors: Did New York actually offer Ben Simmons a contract?');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Ben-Simmons_9be305.jpg"><figcaption>Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks rumors: Did New York actually offer Ben Simmons a contract?</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-09-08T10:58:11-07:00">September 8th, 10:58am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-09-08T11:03:56-07:00">September 8th, 11:03am</time><address><a>Erik Slater</a>Erik Slater is the credentialed Brooklyn Nets beat reporter for ClutchPoints. He's a graduate of Lehigh University and the Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University, as well as a Lehigh Football and Syracuse Football alum.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Brooklyn Nets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The New York Knicks made an unsuccessful run at a former All-Star this summer. According to NBA insider Marc Stein, <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/monday-best-the-latest-nba-trade" rel="noopener">New York offered</a> Ben Simmons a one-year, minimum deal, which he declined.</p><p>“New York is limited to minimum contract offers as training camps draw near and Simmons entered the summer hopeful of securing a contract above the minimum after he split last season between the Nets and Clippers. Boston and New York, I’m told, expressed the most serious interest in Simmons this summer,” Stein wrote.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-ben-simmons-unsure-continuing-career-amid-knicks-interest">Simmons is an unrestricted free agent</a> after playing for the Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Clippers last season. While the three-time All-Star has drawn interest from the Knicks and Celtics, he’s contemplating whether he wants to continue his NBA career, according to the New York Post’s Stefan Bondy. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-news-ben-simmons-agent-drops-him-retirement-rumors">Stein reported last week that Simmons’ agent</a>, Bernie Lee, had dropped him.</p><p>ESPN’s Brian Windhorst also reported that Simmons may have to settle for a non-guaranteed contract entering training camp.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Ben Simmons may be forced to sign a non-guaranteed minimum contract, per <a href="https://twitter.com/WindhorstESPN?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WindhorstESPN</a> </p><p>“At the end of the day Ben Simmons stock has been falling dramatically for years.”</p><p>(h/t <a href="https://twitter.com/MrBuckBuckNBA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MrBuckBuckNBA</a> ) </p><p> <a href="https://t.co/u32qme8ktQ">pic.twitter.com/u32qme8ktQ</a></p><p>— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheDunkCentral/status/1963624234019647802?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 4, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><h2>Ben Simmons passes on Knicks contract offer amid retirement rumors</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Ben-Simmons1.jpg"><figcaption>Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Simmons’ stock has plummeted over the last four seasons following his meltdown during the Philadelphia 76ers’ second-round loss to the Atlanta Hawks in 2021. After sitting out the entire 2021-22 season due to a back injury and mental health issues, the Aussie was traded to the Brooklyn Nets as part of a package for James Harden.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-clippers/clippers-news-ben-simmons-signs-with-clippers-after-nets-buyout">Simmons looked like a shell of his All-Star self with Brooklyn</a> as his offensive passivity continued to trend in the wrong direction. He averaged 6.5 points, 6.2 rebounds and 6.3 assists while attempting 5.3 shots per game over 90 appearances with the Nets. The former No. 1 pick continued to struggle after agreeing to a buyout and joining the Clippers midway through last season.</p><p>Simmons averaged 2.9 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 16.4 minutes per game over 18 appearances with Los Angeles. He attempted a career-low 6.6 shots per 36 minutes while shooting a career-low 43.4 percent from the field despite attempting 86.8 percent of his shots from within 10 feet.</p><p>Despite this, New York seemed to think the 6-foot-10 ball-handler could prove valuable in a reserve role. The Knicks made several additions to their bench this offseason, signing Guerschon Yabusele and Jordan Clarkson in free agency. They have three standard roster spots left to fill entering training camp.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks rumors: Did New York actually offer Ben Simmons a contract?

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-news-ben-simmons-agent-drops-him-retirement-rumors');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA news: Ben Simmons dropped by agent amid retirement rumors');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Ben-Simmons.jpg"><figcaption>Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA news: Ben Simmons dropped by agent amid retirement rumors</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-09-04T12:01:08-07:00">September 4th, 12:01pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-09-04T12:03:53-07:00">September 4th, 12:03pm</time><address><a>Erik Slater</a>Erik Slater is the credentialed Brooklyn Nets beat reporter for ClutchPoints. He's a graduate of Lehigh University and the Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University, as well as a Lehigh Football and Syracuse Football alum.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Brooklyn Nets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Ben Simmons will need to find new representation if he chooses to continue his NBA career. Bernie Lee informed the National Basketball Players Association that he has <a href="https://x.com/TheSteinLine/status/1963657686739751085" rel="noopener">formally removed himself</a> from the union ledger as Simmons’ agent, according to Marc Stein.</p><p>Simmons played for the Nets and Los Angeles Clippers last season during the final year of his max contract. He’s drawn interest from the New York Knicks and one other team this offseason <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-ben-simmons-unsure-continuing-career-amid-knicks-interest">but is also considering retirement</a>, according to the New York Post’s Stefan Bondy.</p><p>Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul represented Simmons when he signed a five-year, $177 million deal with the Philadelphia 76ers. However, the former No. 1 pick parted ways with Klutch in 2023 following his first season with the Brooklyn Nets. He signed with Lee shortly after.</p><h2>Ben Simmons dropped by agent with NBA future up in the air</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Ben-Simmons-1.jpg"><figcaption>Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-clippers/clippers-news-ben-simmons-signs-with-clippers-after-nets-buyout">Simmons has been unable to regain his All-Star form</a> following his collapse during the 76ers’ second-round loss to the Atlanta Hawks during the 2021 playoffs. The three-time All-Star sat out the entire 2021-22 season due to a back injury and mental health issues.</p><p>He continued to trend in the wrong direction in terms of offensive aggressiveness following his trade to the Nets. The Aussie averaged 6.5 points, 6.2 rebounds and 6.3 assists while attempting 5.3 shots per game over 90 appearances with Brooklyn. He agreed to a buyout midway through last season and signed with the Clippers.</p><p>However, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-clippers/clippers-news-stephen-a-smith-drops-ben-simmons-stealing-money-take">Simmons continued to struggle</a> with Los Angeles, averaging 2.9 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 16.4 minutes per game over 18 appearances. The 29-year-old attempted a career-low 6.5 shots per 36 minutes during his stint with the Clippers. He shot a career-low 43.4 percent from the field despite attempting 86.8 percent of his shots from within 10 feet.</p><p>While Simmons is contemplating his NBA future, it’s <a href="https://x.com/TheDunkCentral/status/1963624234019647802" rel="noopener">not a foregone conclusion</a> that he would have a roster spot this coming season if he decides to continue playing.</p><p>“The reality is, he’s looking at the minimum contract… He might even be forced to take a contract where he’s not guaranteed,” said ESPN’s Brian Windhorst. “He would have to sort of earn his way onto the team through training camp and then maybe not know his status until midway through the season. If that’s the case, maybe he may want to wait a few months to see where a good fit would be… At the end of the day, Ben Simmons’ stock has been falling dramatically for years, and the fact that we’re into September and he doesn’t have a full-time, guaranteed job speaks to that.”</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA news: Ben Simmons dropped by agent amid retirement rumors

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-pablo-torre-teases-interesting-jalen-brunson-revelations-kawhi-leonard-bombshell');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks rumors: Pablo Torre teases ‘interesting’ Jalen Brunson revelations after Kawhi Leonard bombshell');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Knicks-All-Star-Jalen-Brunson-1.jpg"><figcaption>Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks rumors: Pablo Torre teases ‘interesting’ Jalen Brunson revelations after Kawhi Leonard bombshell</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-09-04T08:51:25-07:00">September 4th, 8:51am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-09-04T10:27:49-07:00">September 4th, 10:27am</time><address><a>Josue Pavon</a>Josue Pavon is an Associate Editor and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat writer for ClutchPoints. He started his career as a credentialed media member writing about the Boston Celtics for WEEI.com in Boston, where he grew into a local on-camera NBA reporter and podcast host for CLNS Media. Alongside the Celtics radio broadcaster and two-time NBA champion Cedric Maxwell, Josue is the co-host of the Cedric Maxwell podcast.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>After Pablo Torre uncovered a potential scandal involving Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer and Kawhi Leonard, could there be similar deals made across the NBA, including the New York Knicks and All-Star Jalen Brunson? The two-time All-Star’s name was mentioned in a recent interview when Torre reflected on the team-friendly deal he was given. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-jalen-brunson-reveals-childhood-goal-still-chasing">Brunson and the Knicks are championship contenders</a>.</p><p>After Brunson agreed to a four-year, $105 million contract in 2022, the Knicks built around the star point guard, leading to a four-year, $156.5 million extension. However, as Torre <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWcasEELmqM&amp;t=588s" rel="noopener">points out</a> on the Dan Patrick Show, poaching Brunson from the Dallas Mavericks at that price came as a surprise at the time.</p><p>“How he arrived at the Knicks, this is where I will have to defer to the reporting I may or may not do on this. Certainly was interesting, right? Like, okay, that’s a pretty good deal for the Knicks,” Torre said. “Anyway, I don’t want to get ahead of myself in terms of.”</p><p>Is this a tease for another bombshell report similar to Kawhi Leonard’s?</p><p>“It’s a bit of a tease. I’m showing a little ankle with you. I always show a little bit more ankle than I should with you. By the way, subscribe, like, and subscribe,” Torre said. “But the thing about how often this happens is a really fascinating question because I would argue that it doesn’t happen to this scale and with this level of documentation, which is only enabled because of the collapse of this fraudulent company. The other stuff, look, historically, right?</p><p>“I was assuming because I’m maybe dumb, like you would give a stock tip or something, right? Like have someone else be multiple degrees away. You wouldn’t do it through a company that has its signage on your building, but that’s what our sources say is exactly the thing that happened,” Torre concluded.</p><h2><b>Jalen Brunson reveals childhood dream he’s chasing with Knicks</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Knicks-All-Star-Jalen-Brunson-2.jpg"><figcaption>Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Coming off of a run to the Eastern Conference Finals, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/new-york-knicks-2025-26-season-predictions">the Knicks’ expectations are high heading into 2025-26</a>, and Jalen Brunson is a big reason why. Heading into the upcoming season, Brunson revealed his <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPoints/status/1960101548262072564" rel="noopener">childhood goal</a> that he still hasn’t achieved, per his Roommates Show podcast.</p><p>“All of my goals are basically team-based. That hasn’t changed. So, it’s about obviously winning — wanting to win a championship,” Brunson said. “That hasn’t changed. But I feel like success is subjective to what you want.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">“The main goal is always to win a chip. I don’t think that’s ever really gonna change.”</p><p>Jalen Brunson speaks on if his goals have ever changed since he was a kid 🤔</p><p>(via <a href="https://twitter.com/Roommates__Show?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Roommates__Show</a>)<br> <a href="https://t.co/pTuf2ypVia">pic.twitter.com/pTuf2ypVia</a></p><p>— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPoints/status/1960101548262072564?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 25, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>The Knicks are hosting the 76ers in their preseason opener on October 2.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks rumors: Pablo Torre teases ‘interesting’ Jalen Brunson revelations after Kawhi Leonard bombshell

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-ben-simmons-unsure-continuing-career-amid-knicks-interest');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Ben Simmons unsure about continuing career amid Knicks interest');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Ben-Simmons-dribbles-the-ball-1.jpg"><figcaption>Rob Gray-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Ben Simmons unsure about continuing career amid Knicks interest</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-09-03T18:19:16-07:00">September 3rd, 6:19pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-09-03T18:38:46-07:00">September 3rd, 6:38pm</time><address><a>Abdullah Imran</a>Abdullah Imran works as an Associate Editor for All Sports at ClutchPoints. He’s been a sports fan his entire life and enjoys writing about every sport. He has spent three years in sports journalism and loves analyzing games. In his free time, he very much enjoys binge-watching shows and playing video games.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The 29-year-old former No. 1 overall pick, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/siegels-scoop-jonathan-kuminga-standoff-warriors-final-stages">Ben Simmons, remains one of the most intriguing figures</a> on the 2025 NBA free-agent market as the season approaches. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-new-york-has-strong-interest-in-ben-simmons">Simmons has generated interest from the New York Knicks</a> and one other team, but the three-time All-Star is questioning whether <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/09/03/sports/knicks-one-of-two-teams-interested-in-ben-simmons-if-he-wants-to-keep-playing/" rel="noopener">he even wants to continue</a> his NBA career for the 2025-26 season, Stefan Bondy of the New York Post reported.</p><p>“Ben Simmons has generated interest from the Knicks and another team but is also questioning whether he even wants to continue playing in the NBA next season,” wrote Bondy.</p><p>Simmons’ time in the NBA has been far from straightforward. Drafted first overall by the Philadelphia 76ers in 2016 after a remarkable freshman season at LSU, Simmons won Rookie of the Year in 2018 and earned three consecutive All-Star selections from 2019 to 2021. During his peak years with Philadelphia, he averaged roughly 16.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 7.6 assists per game while shooting 56.6% from the field, and he also earned two All-Defensive Team selections and one All-NBA nod.</p><p>However, Simmons’ career has been hampered by injuries and inconsistent play. He missed the entire 2021-22 season following a holdout and back injury that eventually required surgery. The turning point came in the 2021 playoffs when he infamously passed up an open dunk in Game 7 against the Atlanta Hawks, an incident that damaged his confidence and relationship with the Sixers. He subsequently refused to play for Philadelphia again and requested a trade.</p><p>Traded to the Brooklyn Nets in September 2022 in exchange for James Harden, Simmons was unable to regain form. Over two seasons with Brooklyn, he appeared in just 57 games and underwent a second back procedure near the end of the 2023-24 season. He was bought out by Brooklyn during the 2024-25 season and signed with the Los Angeles Clippers, where he appeared in 18 regular-season games, averaging career-low numbers of 2.9 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 3.1 assists in 16.4 minutes per game. In the playoffs, he played five games, averaging 8.4 minutes and 0.8 points on 33% shooting during the Clippers’ first-round loss to the Denver Nuggets.</p><p>In the past four seasons, Simmons has appeared in just 108 games, a far cry from the high expectations of his early days. Nevertheless, he offers a unique combination of height, playmaking, and defensive versatility. Standing 6-foot-10 with point guard instincts, Simmons remains relevant in discussions about team depth, particularly for a team like the Knicks, which is coming off their first Eastern Conference Finals appearance since 2000.</p><p>New York recently hired Mike Brown as head coach, and any potential role for Simmons would likely be limited to a reserve position, focusing on defensive and playmaking contributions rather than scoring.</p><p>Financially, Simmons has earned over $203 million during his career, with the largest portion, $123 million, coming during his time with the Nets, according to Spotrac.com. Should he decide to retire, Simmons’ career will be remembered as both a story of immense potential and unfulfilled promise, with three All-Star selections, Rookie of the Year honor, two All-Defensive Team nods, and one All-NBA appearance, but an <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/10-nba-players-whose-potential-was-robbed-by-off-court-issues-ranked">inability to consistently stay healthy</a> or fully realize his early promise.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Ben Simmons unsure about continuing career amid Knicks interest

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-ben-simmons-knicks-celtics');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Ben Simmons’ expected decision amid Knicks, Celtics interest');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Los-Angeles-Clippers-forward-Ben-Simmons.jpg"><figcaption>Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Ben Simmons’ expected decision amid Knicks, Celtics interest</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-08-05T16:58:10-07:00">August 5th, 4:58pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-08-06T07:45:42-07:00">August 6th, 7:45am</time><address><a>Zachary Draves</a>Zachary Draves is a sportswriter and broadcaster based in the Quad Cities of Illinois and Iowa. Zachary covers a variety of different sports as well as sports history, sport and society, and sport and culture. He is also a professor of sociology.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Boston Celtics</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>NBA veteran Ben Simmons is looking at what is next as an unrestricted free agent. At this point, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-new-york-has-strong-interest-in-ben-simmons" rel="noopener">New York Knicks are expressing interest in snatching him up</a>. </p><p>Among the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-suns-celtics-added-list-ben-simmons-suitors" rel="noopener">teams expressing interest in Simmons</a> are the Boston Celtics and the Phoenix Suns. At this point, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/siegels-scoop-jonathan-kuminga-standoff-warriors-final-stages" rel="noopener">the Knicks and Celtics have the greater interest in Simmons</a>, per Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints. </p><p>Reportedly, Simmons is expected to narrow his decision sometime soon. Furthermore, Siegel believes that Simmons will likely end up with the Knicks. </p><p>Simmons is 29 years old and still has productive years ahead of him. Although his skills have diminished due to injuries and a back problem, he has played for the Brooklyn Nets and the LA Clippers.</p><p>Last year, Simmons averaged 5.0 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 5.6 assists while playing in 51 total games. </p><p>Since 2016, Simmons has become a recognizable presence in the NBA after being drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers. In 2018, he was named the NBA Rookie of the Year. Simmons was an NBA All-Star in 2019, 2020, and 2021. </p><h2><b>Ben Simmons and his potential with the Knicks</b></h2><p>At first glance, the thought of Simmons joining the New York Knicks may seem perplexing to some, considering the vulnerabilities he brings. Nevertheless, he also possesses a particular skill set that could be beneficial to Coach Mike Brown.</p><p>After all, Brown emphasizes the importance of defense, which is where Simmons can step up and contribute. In addition, the Knicks are loaded with talent coming off an <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hk7K5BIUJuo" rel="noopener">appearance in the Eastern Conference Finals</a>. </p><p>They have a solid core of Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Josh Hart. From a name standpoint, Simmons can fit right in. However, there may be limited opportunities for Simmons to get the ball due to being prone to injuries, as well as wanting to get the most out of these key players. </p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Ben Simmons’ expected decision amid Knicks, Celtics interest

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-giannis-antetokounmpo-top-new-yorks-star-hunting-list');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks rumors: Giannis Antetokounmpo at top of New York’s ‘star hunting’ list');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Antetokounmpo-vs-the-Knicks.jpg"><figcaption>Michael McLoone-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks rumors: Giannis Antetokounmpo at top of New York’s ‘star hunting’ list</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-08-05T11:04:18-07:00">August 5th, 11:04am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-08-05T11:26:13-07:00">August 5th, 11:26am</time><address><a>Jackson Stone</a>Jackson Stone is a Mercer University senior from Atlanta on track to graduate with a BA in communications. A lifelong sports lover, Jackson is a die-hard fan of all Atlanta teams. He joined ClutchPoints in 2023.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The New York Knicks haven’t made a ton of huge moves this offseason, but they did recently raise some eyebrows by <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mikal-bridges-4-word-mic-drop-150-million-contract-extension">signing Mikal Bridges</a> to a lucrative contract extension. Still, the prevailing feeling around the league seems to be that the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/1-final-move-new-york-knicks-complete-2025-nba-offseason">Knicks are one piece away</a> from really competing for a championship.</p><p>Perhaps there is <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6534635/2025/08/05/knicks-giannis-antetokounmpo-ben-simmons/?source=user_shared_article" rel="noopener">no bigger piece</a> in the NBA than Giannis Antetokounmpo, who has seen his trade rumors reignited this past week in the wake of recent reporting from Shams Charania of ESPN.</p><p>Recently, Knicks insider James L. Edwards III of The Athletic broke down why New York could be a potential landing spot for the Greek Freak.</p><p>“It is my understanding that Leon Rose and company have been monitoring Giannis Antetokounmpo’s situation in Milwaukee very closely, even before the offseason started,” reported Edwards III. “Many around the league believe the Knicks are interested in star hunting, and while that opportunity hasn’t popped up yet, I certainly believe it’s in the cards if the right situation presents itself.”</p><p>It would certainly require a lot for the Knicks to swing a trade for Antetokounmpo, featuring a package that would almost assuredly include Karl-Anthony Towns and a slew of draft compensation.</p><h2><b>Do the Knicks have enough?</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Brunson-Hart-and-Bridges.jpg"><figcaption>Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The Knicks made their deepest playoff run in a quarter century last year when they knocked off the Boston Celtics in the second round before ultimately bowing out to the Indiana Pacers in the Conference Finals.</p><p>While this Knicks core hasn’t been together for very long, they aren’t exactly spring chickens, as Towns, Jalen Brunson, Bridges, and OG Anunoby are all age 28 or older, meaning New York probably isn’t getting much better than it is right now.</p><p>Concerns about the Knicks’ best two players–Towns and Brunson–both being clear negatives on the defensive side of the ball ultimately came to fruition in New York’s loss against the Pacers, and switching out Towns for Antetokounmpo would certainly alleviate that problem.</p><p>However, at the present moment, there’s no indication that a move is especially likely anytime soon.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks rumors: Giannis Antetokounmpo at top of New York’s ‘star hunting’ list

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-mikal-bridges-in-position-land-bonkers-contract-before-extension');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks rumors: Mikal Bridges in position to land bonkers contract before NY extension');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Mikal-Bridges.jpg"><figcaption>Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks rumors: Mikal Bridges in position to land bonkers contract before NY extension</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-07-31T20:33:48-07:00">July 31st, 8:33pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-07-31T20:33:48-07:00">July 31st, 8:33pm</time><address><a>Richard Pereira</a>Richard Pereira joined ClutchPoints in January 2025 as an Associate Editor. He earned his degree from Florida Atlantic University in 2023 and has been covering the school's athletic programs since 2020, having served as a Sports Editor at the FAU University Press. He was granted the unique opportunity to report on the men's basketball team's journey to the Final Four in Houston for FAU Owls Nest during March Madness, consistently striving to grow as a sports journalist.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Mikal Bridges decided to secure a crucial <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mikal-bridges-150-million-contract-extension">contract extension with the New York Knicks</a> this offseason. However, he could’ve held out on an expiring contract and obtain a bigger deal in the process.</p><p>Bridges agreed to a four-year extension with the Knicks on Thursday, earning $150 million in that span. It will start when the 2026-27 campaign starts, as he assists New York in boosting the roster with future key additions.</p><p>However, <a href="https://www.hoopshype.com/story/sports/nba/rumors/2025/07/31/some-executives-thought-mikal-bridges-would-get-close-to-200-million-in-open-market/85468316007/" rel="noopener">$200 million could’ve been on the table</a>, according to The Athletic’s Fred Katz. League executives thought that the Knicks wing would’ve been more patient on the extension, waiting so he can land a bigger contract.</p><p>“Prior to this agreement, some league executives who spoke to The Athletic thought Bridges, given his history of never missing games, might play next season on an expiring contract and attempt to get closer to $200 million on the open market next summer,” Katz said.</p><h2><b>What’s next for Mikal Bridges, Knicks</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/New-York-Knicks-forward-Mikal-Bridges.jpg"><figcaption>David Butler II-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>If that seems to be the case, Mikal Bridges decided to pass on an extra $50 million for his contract to help the Knicks in the long term.</p><p>Bridges has been quite the healthy player throughout his NBA career, rarely missing games. He played every game for the Knicks last season, averaging 17.6 points, 3.7 assists and 3.2 rebounds per game. He shot 50% from the field, including 35.4% from beyond the arc, and 81.4% from the free-throw line.</p><p>Bridges played a huge role in New York securing the third seed in the Eastern Conference with a 51-31 record. He had huge moments throughout playoffs, helping the Knicks reach the East Finals for the first time since 2000.</p><p>Despite losing to the Indiana Pacers in six games, the Knicks proved that they have the talent to make a Finals run. That is why they made upgrades to the bench, signing spark plug Jordan Clarkson and Guerschon Yabusele.</p><p>The East will be up for grabs after Boston and Indiana suffered severe injuries with Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton down for the count. However, New York should not take this opportunity for granted as they will have a lot of expectations next season.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks rumors: Mikal Bridges in position to land bonkers contract before NY extension

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-rumors-new-york-has-strong-interest-in-ben-simmons');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks rumors: New York has ‘strong interest’ in Ben Simmons');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/New-York-has-strong-interest-in-Ben-Simmons.jpg"><figcaption>Credit: Robert Edwards</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks rumors: New York has ‘strong interest’ in Ben Simmons</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-07-31T11:13:43-07:00">July 31st, 11:13am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-07-31T11:14:00-07:00">July 31st, 11:14am</time><address><a href="https://www.facebook.com/chris.spiering.3" rel="facebook">Chris Spiering</a>Chris Spiering graduated from the University of San Diego with a Communication Studies Degree. He spent his final year as the Sports Editor for the USDVista newspaper. Chris manages the betting team at ClutchPoints and contributes about the NFL, MLB, and NBA, but he follows most sports, including NCAA Basketball. Chris also covers San Diego State men's basketball for East Village Times.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Just a few seasons ago, nobody in the basketball community ever imagined Ben Simmons playing for a third Atlantic Division squad, but with how reports are looking, that could very well be the case.</p><p>Simmons began his career with the Philadelphia 76ers and was later traded to the Brooklyn Nets for James Harden. Simmons ended last season with the Los Angeles Clippers, teaming up with the guy he was once traded for.</p><p>In a recent New York Knicks <a href="https://sny.tv/articles/knicks-mailbag-mike-brown-7-31-25" rel="noopener">Mailbag by Ian Begley</a>, he mentioned that the Knicks have “strong interest” in Simmons. The other team that does? The Boston Celtics. Begley does not mention that in his article, but <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-suns-celtics-added-list-ben-simmons-suitors">reports have shown that Boston is interested</a>.</p><p>Who would have imagined?</p><p>In responding to a question, here is what Begley said.</p><p>“Ben Simmons is certainly a candidate for the Knicks’ final roster spot. As of earlier this week, New York continued to show strong interest in signing Simmons as teams in on Simmons await his decision.”</p><p>“He’s garnered interest from several teams around the league. The Knicks also have maintained interest in Landry Shamet for that final roster spot.”</p><p>“New York’s team salary cannot exceed the second apron ($207.8 million). They have enough money to sign a rookie free agent (it seems to me that Kevin McCullar is the best candidate for that spot) and a veteran to a minimum deal.”</p><p>“They would need to make a trade in order to add a third player on a traditional NBA deal. All of New York’s two-way spots are open as well.”</p><p>The Knicks hired Mike Brown to be the new head coach. Expect a different play style for the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/1-final-move-new-york-knicks-complete-2025-nba-offseason">New York Knicks</a>, who are still one of the top teams in the NBA. They were very close to making an NBA Finals appearance last season, but had the flaming-hot Indiana Pacers in the way.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

New York
Knicks RUMORS

NEW YORK

KNICKS

New YorkKnicks RUMORS

NEW YORK

KNICKS

New York
Knicks RUMORS