The Knicks have a simple call to make on Pacôme Dadiet, and the clock is already ticking toward the end of October.
Dadiet, the No. 25 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, has done little so far to suggest he’s pushing toward a real future as part of New York’s core. That makes the team’s decision on his fourth-year option for 2027-28, due by October 31, look pretty straightforward. It would be a surprise if the Knicks picked it up.
The option is worth about $5.4 million, a noticeable jump from the roughly $3 million attached to the third-year option the Knicks already exercised last year. That matters, because roster spots and cap space are going to be tight for a team that appears headed toward the second apron in future seasons.
Dadiet’s name has already surfaced as a likely trade candidate in conversations around the league, and a guaranteed salary for another year would only make him tougher to move. As it stands, he’s the kind of player who could be used to help New York reshuffle the back end of the roster. If that money becomes locked in, the flexibility shrinks.
The on-court case hasn’t helped him. In two NBA seasons, Dadiet has appeared in just 47 regular-season games, and those minutes have mostly come in garbage time, with a few end-of-year games mixed in that carried little meaning. He has yet to carve out a meaningful role.
This summer didn’t change the picture much. Dadiet played four games in July’s summer league and shot 36.4 percent from the field and 16.0 percent from three. He also had more than twice as many turnovers as assists.
Then came three more underwhelming performances for Ivory Coast in the FIBA World Cup qualifiers at the end of August.
For a 6-foot-9 guard/forward, the concern is obvious: against lesser competition, he still hasn’t looked like one of the better players on the floor. That’s not the kind of trend that usually leads to a guaranteed fourth year.
The Knicks, meanwhile, are built to compete now. They’re bringing back most of their championship roster from last season, which makes it difficult to see where Dadiet would fit into the rotation anyway. If New York wants to use that roster spot elsewhere, it has options - including one of its three second-round picks in 2027, which would count less against the cap than Dadiet’s option, or a veteran’s minimum signing that would also come in at a lower number.
So while the 2024 first-round pick looks like a miss, the Knicks have managed to succeed despite it. That’s part of why this decision feels so clean.
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