The Knicks may have built their core through trades and free agency, but keeping that group together is going to require the kind of financial discipline that has become a necessity in the modern NBA. With the league’s new salary cap rules and second apron making long-term spending tougher, New York could end up following the same blueprint as Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs: accept less on paper now in order to preserve a real shot at staying competitive later.
That idea sits at the center of Josh Hart and Karl-Anthony Towns’ next contract conversations. Both players are eligible for extensions soon, and both could be asked to sacrifice some money to keep the Knicks’ championship group intact.
As James L. Edwards III of The Athletic put it, "It’s very realistic... neither Towns nor Hart will get the max extensions they’re eligible for.
So technically, they’ll be taking 'discounts.'... Towns’ situation will be trickier than Hart’s.
He’ll take a discount, but by how much? And does New York want to pay the 30-year-old Towns $55 million to $65 million per year over the next four years?
That’s a question the Knicks will keep pondering," they wrote.
Towns is the more expensive puzzle piece. He is already taking up the most room on the Knicks’ payroll, and that will remain true for at least two more seasons.
He is slated to make $57,078,728 in 2026-27, a figure that ranks ninth in the league, before jumping to $61,015,192 in 2027-28. Those numbers are hefty for a team that still wants Jalen Brunson driving the offense and enough flexibility around him to keep competing.
The projection data doesn’t exactly scream max-contract urgency, either. Towns’ projected Per 36 numbers for 2026-27 are still strong, but not so overwhelming that the Knicks have to treat a max extension as a foregone conclusion. His max is worth $272 million over four years, and the question is whether New York and James Dolan can land on terms that keep him in place without boxing the roster in.
Hart presents a different kind of challenge. His contract is much more manageable, but his value to the Knicks makes him just as important to retain.
He is set to earn $20,923,760 in 2026-27 and $22,375,280 in the final year of his deal, which places him 89th in contract value around the league. The next deal projected for him lands in the $54 million to $62 million range over three years, though some estimates push that figure to about $70 million if he drives a harder bargain.
And there’s a reason Hart matters so much in this conversation. The Knicks need players who fit cleanly next to Brunson, and Hart’s role and production make him one of those rare glue pieces every contender wants.
His Per 36 projections for 2026-27 suggest an even stronger season ahead, which only complicates the salary discussion. If New York wants him to stay on a discount, the appeal of contending for a title may be the best leverage it has.
That is the lesson the Spurs have already made clear. Victor Wembanyama and San Antonio have set the standard for being team-friendly and win-oriented. The Knicks, even after getting past that kind of rival, may need to borrow the same approach if they want to keep their veteran core together through the prime years.
In Other News...
Knicks Championship Window Suddenly Comes Down To Leon Rose
The Knicks finally broke through in Mike Browns first season, ending a 53-year championship drought and giving Leon Rose immediate validation for the roster he assembled. What made the title run especially striking was how little of the core came through the draft, a reminder that this front office leaned on veteran talent and shrewd team-building to get over the top.
Now the challenge shifts from celebration to preservation, because the hard part of keeping a title window open is often less about finding stars than keeping them aligned. New York still has important work to do on the contract front, with Karl-Anthony Towns and Josh Hart both needing to be locked in beyond their current team control, and the next steps will say plenty about how Rose plans to sustain what the Knicks just built. [Read more 🡒]
Knicks Could Lose A Crucial Championship Piece For One Frustrating Reason
Miles McBride has become one of the Knicks more important supporting pieces, but his long-term future in New York is already looking uncertain. With the team expected to keep operating under salary cap pressure tied to owner James Dolan, the guard is on track to finish out the final year of his current deal rather than work out an extension, a setup that puts the Knicks in a familiar bind when it comes to retaining useful role players.
For a team trying to stay in the championship conversation, losing a dependable guard because of finances would be a frustrating outcome even if it is not yet a done deal. If McBride does reach free agency, there should be no shortage of interest, with the Brooklyn Nets, Sacramento Kings and Memphis Grizzlies among the clubs that could come calling, leaving New York to weigh whether it can afford to keep one of its more valuable pieces in place. [Read more 🡒]
Knicks Suddenly Have A Quiet Roster Battle Worth Watching
The Knicks still have a vacant 14th roster spot to sort out before the season, and it has quietly become one of the more interesting small-picture decisions on their board. With a few moving parts left on the depth chart, the front office is weighing how to use that flexibility in a way that fits both the present roster and what might be coming next.
Miles McBrides future is part of the backdrop, and if New York cannot keep him in the fold, that could reshape the teams plans around that final opening. One path being discussed would be to create room for rookie Tyler Nickel, who turned heads in Summer League and is seen as a possible wing insurance option if the Knicks want another young role player on the back end of the roster. [Read more 🡒]