New York

Knicks

A weakness of the Knicks last year was bench depth. The Knicks relied so heavily on their starters under coach Tom Thibodeau, some players were seeing decent minutes coming off the bench for the first time in the Eastern Conference finals. After adding Jordan Clarkson on the first day of free agency and now signing Yabusele on a two-year deal, the Knicks are building some legitimate bench depth for their new coach, whoever that might end up being. Yabusele averaged 11 points per game and 5.6 rebounds per game in 70 games for the 76ers last year.

A few hours after it was reported that the two sides had mutual interest, Clarkson has reportedly decided to sign with the Knicks once he clears waivers. The veteran guard, who agreed to a contract buyout with the Jazz on Monday, has appeared in 92 games over the last two seasons due to injuries. When healthy, Clarkson can provide value as a bench scorer, as evidenced by his winning Sixth Man of the Year following the 2020-21 season. From a fantasy standpoint, he offers limited value due to the limited production outside of points, assists and three-pointers.

Brown is the first candidate to have a second interview scheduled with the Knicks as New York’s exhaustive search for a new coach approaches a conclusion. The 55-year-old Brown last coached the Sacramento Kings, but was fired in his third season with the club after a 13-18 start to the season that included a five-game losing streak. He also previously coached the Cavaliers and the Lakers. The Knicks are still the only NBA team without a head coach.

Clarkson was recently bought out of his contract by the Jazz. The 33-year-old point guard isn’t the only big-name veteran with interest in the Knicks as Russell Westbrook is also reportedly interested in joining the reigning Eastern Conference finalists. While neither Westbrook nor Clarkson project for fantasy-relevant roles with the Knicks, both are ideal additions for the veteran minimum.

The Knicks are one of several teams expected to be interested in Westbrook. The 36-year-old point guard had a bounce back season with the Nuggets averaging 13.3 points per game, 4.9 rebounds per game and 6.1 assists per game. The Knicks have the $5 million tax-payer exception and the veteran’s minimum exception to offer free agents.

No surprises with this move, as Utah continues to move backcourt pieces to promote the development of players like Isaiah Collier, Keyonte George and rookie Walter Clayton Jr. Clarkson averaged 17.7 points and 2.4 triples across five full seasons with Utah, and he can offer microwave scoring to contending teams.

The Knicks moved back a spot in the draft order, sending the 50th overall pick to the Clippers in exchange for the 51st pick and the draft rights to 2015 draft pick Luka Mitrovic. Diawara most recently played for Cholet Basket in France, and it’s fair to question if he’ll come over to the NBA this season, or if the Knicks will stash him. New York is in a position where it’ll be looking to strengthen a roster that reached the Eastern Conference Finals this season, and Diawara is not a player who would make an immediate impact.

New York swapped picks with the Clippers, which means Sanders will return to California. After four seasons at Cal Poly, Sanders made the move to Reno for his final season of college basketball. The 6-foot-6 guard averaged 15.8 points, 3.9 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.2 three-pointers in 31.7 minutes per game, shooting 46 percent from the field and 79.5 percent from the foul line last season. While Sanders has excellent size and instincts for a playmaker, his athleticism does not jump off the tape, and there is still work for him to do as a perimeter shooter. The 23-year-old will likely struggle to crack the Clippers’ rotation. The Knicks also acquired the draft rights to Luka Mitrovic, who was the 60th overall pick in 2015.

Borrego is currently the associate head coach of the Pelicans under Willie Green. The 47-year-old Borrego was the Hornets’ head coach for four seasons before he was fired after the 2021-22 season. Borrego is the fourth known person to interview with the Knicks joining Mike Brown, Taylor Jenkins and Micah Nori. The Knicks are still looking for a new coach after parting ways with Tom Thibodeau shortly after losing in the Eastern Conference finals.

The Knicks have already been denied from speaking with five current head coaches and appear to be shifting their focus to candidates they don’t need permission to interview. Brown, who last coached the Sacramento Kings, and Jenkins, who was with the Memphis Grizzlies, both fit that bill. Amick reports there could be more names joining them on the Knicks’ list, which is still yet to be finalized. The Knicks are the only head coaching vacancy in the NBA at the moment and appear in no rush to hire a new coach after parting ways with Tom Thibodeau last week.