I let everybody down not publishing notes in a week, thinking there was nothing happening around the League but still saving clippings into a document that ended up growing monstrous. Won’t happen again, for my own health.
- Jalen Brunson’s wrist recovery remains the biggest health variable hanging over the Knicks. Dexter Henry of the New York Post stressed the difference between Brunson being medically cleared and actually looking like Brunson again, while Bryan Fonseca argued that New York’s repeat hopes effectively disappear if its Finals MVP cannot return to his pre-injury level. All we know is that Brunson is still not participating in basketball activities and has described the rehab process as “frustrating.”
- Josh Hart seems perfectly comfortable joking about the money that is coming his way.
- James L. Edwards III of The Athletic has heard estimates ranging from roughly $54-$62 million over three years for Hart’s next deal, although Edwards believes something closer to $70-$80 million might represent fairer value.
- Hart spoke to our own Michael Zeno and opened up about how much New York has come to feel like home after years of bouncing around the league. Hart also revealed he has no plans to undergo another procedure on the troublesome ring finger of his shooting hand despite playing through the injury last season.
“But now, I’m in New York. I feel like I have a home here, and I’m extremely happy.”
“No, I’ll let it go. At the end of my career, when I’m done hooping, I’ll probably have to get a joint replacement in it, but for now it’s fine.”
- Hart offered a nice explanation for what keeps him grounded through an NBA season, mentioned his wife, Mikal Bridges and Brunson as people who help him navigate the grind and, in perhaps Hart’s best reflection on the championship he just won, he said roughly 90 percent of fans who approach him mention either their father or their son when discussing the title. Worth read in full!
- Jose Alvarado kept his dream year going, now internationally. The Brooklyn-born Knicks guard is representing Puerto Rico at the FIBA World Cup, and he already scored a team-high 19 points for Puerto Rico in an 89-75 World Cup qualifying loss to Argentina. The Knicks guard shot 7-of-15 from the field and added six rebounds and four assists. Former Knick Pablo Prigioni coached Argentina.
- Pacome Dadiet, who does not represent France, also made his senior international debut, helping Ivory Coast beat Mali 83-77. Dadiet scored nine points on 4-of-12 shooting and struggled from deep at 1-of-8, but grabbed a game-high nine rebounds, including five on the offensive glass.
- The Knicks’ third-center search took another hit with Nick Richards going to the Miami Heat. With Ariel Hukporti already gone to Philadelphia and Mitchell Robinson in Boston, New York still has not filled the final, third-string center spot behind Karl-Anthony Towns and Andre Drummond. The increasingly likely outcome? A training-camp competition between veterans on non-guaranteed deals to determine he earns the gig.
- The Knicks, meanwhile, still have all three two-way roster spots open with training camp approaching. Rookie Tyler Nickel remains unsigned and could fill one of them if he begins his professional career rather than returning to college.
- Leon Rose received major praise from CBS Sports’ Sam Quinn for building one of the strangest championship rosters in league history, as the Knicks just became only the second NBA champion ever to win without drafting a single member of its starting five, joining the 2020 Lakers.
- The Athletic’s latest NBA power rankings put the Knicks at No. 1 overall entering training camp.
“It’s easy to put the Knicks at No. 1 after their dominant postseason run. Ten of their top 12 players return, though NBA Finals MVP Jalen Brunson has to recover from wrist surgery on his shooting hand. Drummond replaces Robinson, but the team still doesn’t have a replacement for Hukporti. We know the Knicks want to replace Hukporti, because they signed center Moussa Cissé to an offer sheet that the Dallas Mavericks matched.
“The regular season will be interesting for the defending champs. There hasn’t been a dominant regular-season Knicks team in the 21st century, as the Knicks haven’t won at least 55 games since 1996-97. Will that matter? How many regular-season losses would it take before we start to believe the Knicks might not be a repeat threat come April? Those are the real questions.” — Law Murray
- (Not) shockingly, ESPN’s summer forecast is much less convinced the Knicks will repeat. Its panel picked New York to win the Eastern Conference with 68 points, comfortably ahead of Philadelphia at 51… but ranked the Knicks a distant third in NBA championship voting behind Oklahoma City and San Antonio. The Thunder received 84 points, the Spurs 74 and New York only 11.
- DeMar DeRozan is headed to Denver on a one-year, $3.9 million deal after being waived by Sacramento. Meanwhile, Klay Thompson officially joined Miami after clearing waivers following a buyout with Dallas.
- Jonathan Kuminga finally found a home, agreeing with Minnesota on a two-year contract that includes a player option.
- Kevin Durant called the Knicks’ championship run “the best championship as a viewer that I’ve ever seen.”
“I was on the fence on if they were going to win. And then they got down every game, and I’m just like, ‘I don’t know.’ And then they started coming back. I didn’t become a believer, to be honest, until the last game. I was just like, the Spurs would be up 15 points every game, 29 points, and then they’d just come back and steal a game. That’s probably why that was the best championship as a viewer that I’ve ever seen.
“Not just because of the Knicks brand winning, but just the fashion they won those games in, it was insane. It really showed you the power dynamic in the NBA: a veteran team that was put together through trades vs. a team that drafted everybody that a lot of people would have loved to see win. For the Knicks to do it that way, I felt they made a statement.”
- Durant also weighed in on Jalen Brunson’s decision to leave roughly $100 million on the table, acknowledging he understands why Brunson made the sacrifice and credited the move for helping New York build a championship roster. That said, KD admitted he probably would have been talked out of doing the same.
“I understand his thought process and why he actually executed that. I can’t put myself in that position and just say, ‘Yeah, I would have done it or not.’ For him to make that decision and come out the way it did, kudos to him. But hopefully he gets that back on the back end.
“I would have gotten talked out of it. I probably would have been like, ‘All right, I’m cool with it.’ I’d have sat down and talked to all my people like I usually do, Rich, all my friends. Like, ‘What? Are you serious? Why do you need to take that risk when this dude’s a billionaire?’ Nobody would do that.”
- Draymond Green likes Klay Thompson’s move to Miami but wonders how the famously independent Thompson will mesh with “Heat Culture.”
- Green also pushed back against treating the signing as though Miami is getting 2018 Klay, comparing the move more appropriately to Ray Allen joining the Heat late in his career.
“I don’t like how everybody’s trying to act like, ‘Oh man, it’s Klay Thompson’ like Klay to the Heat, like this is Klay of 2018. The reason I don’t like it is because I feel like everybody’s trying to set Klay up for failure. And so, I’m going to say it right here, right now. Let’s stop acting like 2017 Klay is going to Miami.
“Don’t try to set my brother up like you about to get the 2017 Klay, so the moment you don’t, y’all can bash him. That’s bullsh*t. He’s going into Year 16 of his career. We obviously know the injuries that he’s faced.”
- Tracy McGrady offered another contribution to the endless rings-versus-individual-awards debate, arguing that a regular-season MVP carries more weight than winning a championship. Sheesh…
- Ice Cube remains convinced BIG3 players should represent the United States in Olympic 3-on-3 basketball, calling USA Basketball “crazy” for not using what he believes are the best 3-on-3 players in the country. And he’s damn right.
“They’re crazy not to use our athletes as the U.S. Olympic team in 3-on-3. The last two Olympics have been a disaster for USA when it comes to what USA Basketball has been putting together to represent the US. I hope they have a ‘come-to-Jesus moment’ and realize that we have the best 3-on-3 players in the world. It’s not even close. They should use our athletes to represent the U.S., especially on U.S. soil. Will they do that or not? Egos may win and prevail, and the U.S. will suffer because of that.”
- Blake Griffin is moving into late-night television, starting on Oct. 20.
- Metta Sandiford-Artest attempted to buy a one-percent stake in the Lakers for $100 million but was swiftly turned down.
