The Knicks may have turned Pacôme Dadiet into a championship-level financial cheat code when they drafted him in 2024, but the roster math has changed fast.
New York entered that draft with Tom Thibodeau still in charge and left with four rookies: Dadiet, Tyler Kolek, Kevin McCullar Jr. and Ariel Hukporti. That haul made more sense once the rest of the summer unfolded.
The Knicks had already sent a pile of first-round picks to the Brooklyn Nets for Mikal Bridges, then doubled down by landing Karl-Anthony Towns right before training camp. Dadiet’s willingness to sign for about 80% of his projected rookie-scale deal helped make that possible, keeping the club below the second apron.
Two years later, that core delivered New York City an NBA Championship.
But what once looked like a smart, necessary roster move is starting to look like a movable piece.
New York opened the 2024-25 season only about $50,000 under the second apron, which made every contract dollar matter and explained why Dadiet was such an important first-round pick for Leon Rose’s front office. Mike Brown, in his first year as Knicks coach, gave Dadiet and Kolek chances to carve out rotation spots. Neither player fully grabbed hold, and both settled into reserve roles for most of the championship season.
Then Mohamed Diawara entered the picture. The rookie wing earned Brown’s trust, climbed ahead of Dadiet in the pecking order, and settled into a nightly role until the Knicks began their postseason prep.
That development only got more complicated after New York’s title run, when the team re-signed Diawara and fellow free agents Jose Alvarado, Landry Shamet and Jordan Clarkson. The Knicks weren’t able to keep the same level of talent in their center group, but Diawara’s new long-term deal made Dadiet’s path to real minutes even murkier.
Now the Knicks are staring at two open roster spots, but because of James Dolan’s directive to stay under the second apron, they can only use one of them. That means if Dadiet stays on the roster, New York can only afford to get attached to one of the five veterans it brought in before training camp.
If the Knicks decide Dadiet is the odd man out, Rose suddenly has more flexibility to work with his Exhibit 9 options.
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Andre Drummond is now part of that answer, and Brunson sounded encouraged by what the veteran can bring to the mix. The Knicks do not have to wait long for the first test of the transition, either, with early-season matchups looming against the 76ers and Celtics, giving Drummond an immediate chance to settle in and see how New Yorks reshaped big-man group holds up against familiar competition. [Read more 🡒]