The Knicks’ 110-88 loss to Dallas in their Summer League finale matters less than what comes next. New York still has a very specific job to do: find cheap, usable depth around a championship roster.
That is where Mohamed Diawara enters the picture. The 6-foot-9 forward was the No. 51 pick in 2025, and his G League production - 7.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.0 assist per game - does not lock him into anything. But it does explain why the Knicks keep giving him looks.
Dallas took control after halftime and outscored New York 69-37 over the final two quarters. The result can fade fast.
Diawara’s development cannot. The Knicks need to learn whether he can defend, make the simple pass, and stay engaged when the ball is not finding him.
That is the real divide here: a player who flashes in a workout versus one a coaching staff can actually trust.
There is no easy lane to 25 minutes for Diawara right now. The Knicks have a title core, established forwards, and a payroll that makes every low-cost contributor matter even more. If he is going to carve out a role, it will have to come through the kind of work that keeps stars on the floor.
Switching cleanly. Moving the ball before the defense collapses.
Finishing through contact. Those are the boxes he has to check.
He does not need to force shots to make the decision tougher.
So the Summer League ending gives the front office a better question than whether Diawara had one good game. Can he provide a real development path and enough defensive value to earn a two-way or end-of-bench spot?
That is the angle worth following. The Knicks are not hunting for a summer scorer to take the ball from Jalen Brunson. They are looking for players who can survive next to him, Towns, and the rest of the group.
Diawara has the size and a legitimate path. Now he has to prove the game still comes to him when the easy touches disappear.
In Other News...
Knicks Fans Just Got A Painful Reminder About The Second Apron
The second apron has become the leagues latest hard reality, and the Knicks are right in the middle of it. New York is projected to start the 2026-27 season below that line, along with 29 other NBA teams, a reminder that the financial pressure is not just a Knicks problem but a league-wide one. It is also the kind of constraint that has already shaped how the franchise talks about roster building, especially after governor James Dolan publicly took aim at the idea of living above that threshold.
For the Knicks, the issue is not abstract. Their decision to avoid crossing the second apron has already carried basketball consequences, including the loss of Mitchell Robinson, who is now on a three-year deal elsewhere. Across the league, other front offices are making similar calculations, and Oklahoma Citys recent move to get under the line only underscored how aggressively teams are treating that cap marker. The Knicks may not be alone in feeling the squeeze, but they know exactly what it costs when the bill comes due. [Read more 🡒]
Knicks Suddenly Have A New Center Problem After Cisse Twist
The Knicks search for center depth took another turn after Dallas matched the offer sheet for Moussa Cisse, leaving New York to keep working the market for a big man who can help fill out the back end of the roster. One name now in the mix is Jamarion Sharp, a 7-foot-5 center who spent Summer League with Toronto and has already built a reputation as a rim protector at the pro level.
Sharps appeal is pretty clear for a team looking for low-risk size: he was the G League Defensive Player of the Year and showed flashes in limited Summer League minutes with 7.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.8 blocks. New York is still sorting through its options, but the idea of using a two-way spot on a defender with that kind of length gives the front office another path if the center market keeps tightening. [Read more 🡒]
Knicks Repeat Hopes Just Got More Complicated In A Familiar Place
The Hawks were already one of the more uncomfortable matchups for the Knicks after giving New York its toughest run in the 2026 playoffs before the title push finally ended their season. Now Atlanta has spent the offseason trying to make itself even harder to handle, with moves aimed at sharpening both the second unit and the defense around a group that has become a familiar problem for New York.
Aaron Wiggins was brought in earlier this month to help the bench offense, and the broader picture is clear enough for the Knicks to notice. Atlanta is trying to turn last springs playoff resistance into something sturdier for the next meeting, and the additions are designed to make that path a lot less forgiving for a team that would rather not see this opponent again in a high-stakes series. [Read more 🡒]