The Knicks’ search for center help just got a little more interesting.
New York has already spent part of the offseason circling New Orleans’ frontcourt, with reports that the Knicks called multiple times about Yves Missi before getting turned away. That interest may not be going away anytime soon, either, because the Pelicans also have Karlo Matkovic in the mix. Now there’s another big man for the Knicks to keep an eye on: Christian Koloko.
New Orleans is bringing Koloko in on a non-guaranteed tryout deal, and Pelicans pundit Shamit Dua noted that Koloko and Kofe Bufkin are joining the team on the same kind of contract. In other words, this is a real camp battle, with no promises attached and no protection if things don’t go well. Either player can be cut during the preseason and sign elsewhere.
That matters for New York because the Knicks are still hunting for a third center, and the market has already been picked over after July’s early spending spree. What’s left are mostly veteran options that don’t exactly jump off the page. A younger player with some upside makes more sense for a team trying to fill out its last roster spot without locking itself into a name it may not love.
Koloko fits that profile better than most. He has shown real value on the glass, averaging 9.7 RPG per 36 minutes in 2024-25, and he has topped 2.0 blocks per 36 minutes in two of his three seasons. The tools are there: rim protection, rebounding, and the kind of length teams keep betting on.
The problem is the sample size. Koloko has only 122 appearances to his name, has never averaged 14 minutes in a season, and missed his entire second NBA campaign because of a blood clot issue. That setback appears to have made it harder for him to settle in, and he ended up playing for three different teams during the 2025-26 season.
Still, he’s only 26, and the appeal is obvious if you’re looking for a low-cost swing. A season in the Knicks’ championship environment could help unlock more of what he’s shown in flashes.
There’s also reason for New York to believe it can develop another center. Mike Brown’s work with Karl-Anthony Towns, along with Ariel Hukporti’s progress and his solid emergency playoff minutes, gives the Knicks some confidence that Koloko could follow a similar path.
If a center trade doesn’t happen, the Knicks may have to keep working further down the board. They still have three two-way contract slots available, which gives them another way to add center depth without forcing the final roster spot onto a player they don’t want.
That also gives Leon Rose some flexibility to wait. The Knicks can leave that last spot open into September and see how the rest of the league shakes out, with more trade chances and possible releases still ahead before opening night.
And that’s why Koloko is worth watching. If the Pelicans don’t like what they see in camp, he could wind up available again, and New York would be in position to jump on a third-string big with some upside. For a Knicks team still looking for center answers, he’s now firmly on the list.
In Other News...
Jason Williams Just Hit The Sixers With A Brutal Reality Check
Jason Williams is already pumping the brakes on the 76ers buzz for 2026-27, and from a Knicks perspective, that matters because he sees Philadelphia trailing a familiar group in the East. Williams singled out New York, along with Miami and Orlando, as teams he expects to finish ahead of the Sixers, a sharp counter to the idea that Philadelphias offseason moves automatically push it into the top tier.
His skepticism centers on whether the roster can hold up where it counts, especially on the defensive end and on the glass. Williams view also runs against LeBron James belief that Philadelphia gives him the best chance to win, which only adds to the intrigue around how the Sixers will be judged before they ever get to prove it on the floor. [Read more 🡒]
Knicks Suddenly Have Another Center Situation Worth Watching Closely
The Clippers frontcourt suddenly looks even more crowded after adding Johni Broome from Philadelphia, a move that piles another center into a group already built around Brook Lopez and several young bigs. Between Baba Miller, Narcisse Ngoy, Yanic Konan Niederhuser, Isaiah Jackson and Jamarion Sharp, there are only so many minutes and roster spots to go around, which is the kind of setup that often forces a team to make a choice sooner rather than later.
For the Knicks, that makes Los Angeles a team worth keeping on the radar. New York is always alert to the market when a usable center might shake loose, whether through a trade or a release, and the Clippers logjam could create exactly that kind of opening. Niederhuser is one name that stands out as a possible end-of-bench hold, especially with the kind of flashes he has shown, but the bigger question is whether the Clippers decide they can keep everyone in the mix. [Read more 🡒]
Lakers Had A Very Different Center Plan If Kessler Fell Through
The Lakers went big to solve their center spot, landing Walker Kessler in a sign-and-trade with Utah and paying a steep price in two first-round picks, two pick swaps and a four-year, $130 million contract. Kessler is set to anchor the middle, with Kevon Looney and Sandro Mamukelashvili behind him, giving Los Angeles a very different look than the one it had been carrying into the offseason.
Mitchell Robinson, meanwhile, was part of the larger center conversation before the Lakers locked in Kessler, and his market wound up taking a different turn. For New York, it is another reminder of how quickly the center market can shift when one domino falls, especially for a player whose value has long been tied to rim protection and the kind of role that contenders are always trying to fill. [Read more 🡒]