As the NBA’s 2025 offseason reaches its late-August doldrums, the New York Knicks’ top choices for their final open roster spot have become clear, per a New York insider.
The Knicks have already made some solid moves this summer, bringing in veterans Guerschon Yabusele and Jordan Clarkson to bolster their bench. Last year under head coach Tom Thibodeau, New York finished with a 51-31 record and the East’s No. 3 seed, advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since Thibodeau was an assistant coach way back in 2000.
Despite this relative success, a dissatisfied New York fired Thibodeau in the summer, eventually replacing him with two-time Coach of the Year Mike Brown.
Fleshing Out the New and Improved Knicks
The new and improved Knicks, along with the Cleveland Cavaliers, appear ready to overtake the Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers as the best squads in the Eastern Conference. Celtics All-NBA forward Jayson Tatum and Pacers All-NBA point guard Tyrese Haliburton are both likely done for the 2025-26 season with Achilles tendon ruptures.
Per Kristian Winfield of The New York Daily News, the Knicks’ final standard roster spot appears likely to come down to one of two free agent names — both familiar faces to Knicks fans, as they were in and out of Thibodeau’s rotations during the playoffs.
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“They’ve done their homework,” Winfield writes. “Names like Malik Beasley and Ben Simmons have gained traction in recent weeks. But two of the safest bets for that final spot were already in the building last season: Delon Wright and Landry Shamet, two familiar faces still flying under the radar despite doing everything asked of them at Madison Square Garden.”
“Wright and Shamet remain unsigned nearly two months after the market opened on June 30,” Winfield adds. “Yet both made strong cases last season to be considered for the Knicks’ 15th roster spot — even if it means beginning the year as part of New York’s stay-ready group. There’s a real argument to be made for bringing one of them back instead of chasing the shinier names still floating on the open market.”
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