At first, the New York Knicks and Kyrie Irving seemed to be a likely marriage.
And the Knicks very well might land a Boston Celtics guard this summer, but it doesn’t appear to be Irving.
Since the Irving rumors flamed out, the Knicks have been linked to Boston’s reserve guard, Terry Rozier, who is a restricted free agent. However, with the Celtics likely agreeing to a deal with Kemba Walker once free agency begins, Boston would have to renounce their rights to Rozier to clear cap space, making him an unrestricted free agent.
With that in mind, the New York Post’s Marc Berman shed some light on the Knicks’ courtship of Rozier in a piece published Friday.
If he becomes an unrestricted free agent, Knicks’ point guard target Terry Rozier is open to taking a short-term one or two-year deal, according to NBA sources. …
According to an NBA source, there is mutual interest between the Knicks and Rozier. But it all depends on Walker, whose preference all along was to stay in Charlotte but the Hornets have not stepped up with a max offer in preliminary contract talks.
As a restricted free agent, the Knicks only had minimal interest in Rozier because of the complication of tying up cap space for days while the Celtics decide to match an offer sheet.
Such a deal actually makes a ton of sense for both sides — something that might be a first for the Knicks. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
The Knicks have made clear they’re not going to sign mid-tier players to massive deals just because they miss out on elite superstars, and signing Rozier allows them to have a serviceable point guard that won’t put them in salary cap hell down the road. For reference, one NBA insider suspects Rozier will land in the $15-18 million a year range. The Knicks reportedly also do not believe Rozier is too far of a step down from Irving, though that belief probably is a little misguided.
As for Rozier, it gives him a chance to prove himself as an 82-game starter. He was great in the 2018 postseason with Kyrie Irving injured, but took a big step back this past season when he saw his role reduced. He has not shied away from saying that starting is important to him — to the point where it’s reportedly more important than money — and joining the Knicks would allow him to do that. The 25-year-old would then have a year or two to prove his worth as a starter and potentially get a much more significant haul when he hits free agency again.
