The Knicks have a pretty clear Miles McBride decision in front of them, and it’s one that makes more sense the closer you look at how this roster is changing around him.
McBride is entering the final year of his second contract with New York, which means the 2026-27 season is the last stop before he can hit unrestricted free agency in 2027. Leon Rose can avoid that by getting an extension done before the season begins. It won’t come cheap - the kind of deal McBride is in line for should land in the tens of millions - but that price tag fits a player who has already carved out a real role.
Mike Brown clearly trusts him. Last year, the Knicks coach went so far as to tell reporters in January that McBride had earned everlasting permission to both shoot - and set screens for teammates - whenever he wanted.
That confidence matters even more now that Mitchell Robinson is gone to the in-division Boston Celtics, leaving McBride as the longest-tenured player on the roster. He turned 26 years old at the start of September, another reminder of how much the front office has turned over the group since he arrived.
The bigger reason to move now, though, is Karl-Anthony Towns. The Knicks are heading into their first full regular season with Towns operating as a playmaking center, and that setup should play directly into McBride’s strengths.
New York already saw what that version of Towns can do. His work as a facilitator from the top of the key helped swing the first-round playoff series against the Atlanta Hawks, especially because Quin Snyder’s group had wing defenders for Jalen Brunson but not the talent or depth to deal with Towns shifting Brunson and OG Anunoby into off-ball scoring roles.
McBride’s postseason was quieter. He was coming off sports hernia surgery that kept him out for almost two months of the regular season, and the numbers reflected that stretch. Across the Knicks’ championship run, he averaged 5.6 points per game, shot 37.5% from 3-point range, and hit just 33.3% of his shots overall.
The biggest issue was inside the arc, where he made fewer than a fifth of his attempts against playoff competition. That was below his normal standard, but it also fit a familiar pattern. McBride is a sharp 3-point shooter, even when the volume climbs, but the rest of his half-court scoring remains a work in progress.
That didn’t stop him from flashing when the Knicks got Towns rolling as a playmaker. McBride closed the second-round series against the Philadelphia 76ers with a 25-point game, burying seven of nine attempts from deep in the first of two Knicks sweeps.
At 6-foot-2, he’s a guard, but his game looks a lot like a small wing’s. He defends 1-3, hounds the ball, and thrives when he can punish defenses for helping off him. Put him next to a Towns-led offense, and his value becomes obvious: he stretches the floor, keeps pressure on the defense, and does the dirty work that makes those lineups harder to solve.
That’s why extending McBride before the season starts looks like the move. He’s already shown he can matter in this system, and with Towns in a new role, the fit should only get cleaner.
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Sweetney spent two seasons in New York before his career continued with other NBA teams and overseas stops, part of the long road many former first-round picks travel after the spotlight of draft night fades. For Knicks fans, his name is tied to a hopeful 2003 class and to the memories that linger even when a players time in orange and blue was brief. [Read more 🡒]
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The Knicks added some organizational size at center by signing Liam Robbins and waiving him soon after, a familiar roster maneuver as teams try to keep developing big men in-house without crowding the NBA roster. Robbins, 27, has limited NBA experience, but the move gives New York another prospect to work with as it continues looking for depth behind its frontcourt rotation.
Robbins is expected to land with the Knicks' G League affiliate, where he can stay close to the organization while getting regular minutes. For a team still sorting out its long-term center picture, the arrangement keeps the door open for more if Robbins shows enough in the coming months, even if his immediate role is likely to begin away from the main roster. [Read more 🡒]
Knicks Roster Math Could Open A Real Opportunity For Tyler Nickel
The Knicks have spent the early part of camp piecing together the back end of the roster, and the math still matters with two open spots and limited room below the second apron. New Yorks flurry of training-camp deals has left the front office juggling present-day flexibility against whatever chance it has to get creative once the season starts, especially with the roster already tight enough that every move has a ripple effect.
Pacome Dadiet has emerged as one of the pieces that could alter the equation if the Knicks decide they need more breathing room. The broader appeal is clear: creating enough space for another veteran-minimum addition while keeping an eye on a path for Tyler Nickel later in the season, when prorated salary rules can sometimes turn a complicated cap sheet into an opening. For now, though, it is less a finished plan than a roster puzzle, and one that could force New York to choose between immediate depth and a cleaner lane for Nickel down the line. [Read more 🡒]