New York Knicks

Front office and bench

Ownership

Madison Square Garden Sports (James L. Dolan, executive chairman)

President

Leon Rose since 2020

General Manager / Senior Vice President of Basketball Operations

Gersson Rosas since 2023

Assistants

• Chris JentAssistant coach
• Darren ErmanAssistant coach
• Rick BrunsonAssistant coach
• Mark BryantAssistant coach
• Maurice CheeksAssistant coach
• Brendan O'ConnorAssistant coach
• Riccardo FoisAssistant coach

The direction

What the franchise says and what its moves show

The Knicks defend the title by keeping their championship starting five (Brunson, Bridges, Anunoby, Hart and Towns) together with cheap tweaks, constrained by the spending limit imposed by Dolan that cost them Mitchell Robinson. Mike Brown is calling for no letup in the day-to-day process, and the big pending issue is an extension for Towns, who has said he wants to stay. Frontcourt depth is the identified weak spot.

Building around

Jalen Brunson Karl-Anthony Towns OG Anunoby Mikal Bridges

What they have said

• He warns that the team can't afford any letup in how it works as it defends the title.

  Head coach Mike Brown · Knicks Media Day (Sports Illustrated / Knicks Centric) · September 2026

• He wants to stay in New York and get an extension done before the season starts.

  Karl-Anthony Towns, player · Sports Illustrated · September 2026

What the data points to

• Deadline buyer Likely

  • Projects to 52.5 wins: built to compete now.
  • But it is over the second apron: it cannot aggregate salaries in a trade, only one-for-one swaps.
• Get under the second apron Likely

  • It is 1.2 M over: its 2031 pick is frozen and its hands are tied in trades.
  • A contender can live with it for one year; two in a row gets very expensive.

Moves

Summer 2026

• 2026 NBA champions: beat San Antonio 4-1 in the Finals (June 13), with Jalen Brunson as Finals MVP.
• Re-signings: Landry Shamet (four years), Jose Alvarado (three years), Mohamed Diawara (four years) and Jordan Clarkson (one year, minimum); Kevin McCullar Jr. re-signs in September.
• Andre Drummond signs (one year, minimum).
• Draft: they trade No. 24 (Cameron Carr, to the Lakers) for future second-round picks and cash, and move their seconds with Houston and Detroit; they keep Jack Kayil (No. 39) and Tyler Nickel (No. 47), among other rights.
• Departures: Mitchell Robinson (Boston, three years and $47.4M; the club didn't match because of the spending limit set by Dolan), Jeremy Sochan (Portland), Ariel Hukporti (Philadelphia) and Trey Jemison (Toronto).
• Towns, Josh Hart and Deuce McBride are seeking extensions, with no deals yet.

Latest

• Oct 17 Waived Waived Gs Bruce Brown and Dink Pate.
• Sep 16 Contract Knicks agree to deal with veteran free agent John Konchar

The roster

14 NBA contracts · 2026-27 salaries

Strengths and weaknesses

Today's roster, facet by facet (league rank)

• Defense 8th
• Rim protection 28th
• Three-point shooting 3rd
• Playmaking 16th
• Scoring 19th
• Rebounding 29th
• Offensive impact 3rd

Roster holes

• Weak in reboundingWith today’s rotation it ranks 29th in the league in rebounding.
• Weak in rim protectionWith today’s rotation it ranks 28th in the league in rim protection.
• Only 1 forwards in the rotationShort on bodies on the wing.

Contracts and extensions

Expiring this season

• Miles McBride 25 years old · paid 4.0 M Salary coming off the books

With an option next summer

• Karl-Anthony Towns57.1 M · can leave early

Bargains (produce far above their salary, for several years)

None.

Pricey but short (paid more than they produce, but ending soon)

None.

Money and picks

Payroll 222.8 M Cap 165.0 M Tax 200.4 M 1st apron 209.0 M 2nd apron 221.7 M

Payroll

222.8 M · over the second apron

Distance to each line

tax: 22.4 M over · 1st apron: 13.8 M over · 2nd apron: 1.2 M over

Next summer

229.0 M committed · no cap space

First-rounders it can trade

None · 1 swap · the 2031 pick is frozen by the second apron

Radar and possible trades

Players who fit and that it can afford

• Tre Jones CHI8.0 M · signed through 2027-28, produces above his salary
• Deandre Ayton WAS8.1 M · expiring contract, produces above his salary
• Jordan Goodwin PHX5.9 M · signed through 2028-29, produces above his salary

A trade that works under the CBA

Trade pieces

Assets

Jose Alvarado (worth 5.6 M more than his salary), Josh Hart (worth 7.8 M more than his salary), Miles McBride (worth 4.5 M more than his salary), Andre Drummond (worth 5.8 M more than his salary)

Contracts that weigh

None

To match salaries

No expiring contract with a useful salary