The Knicks made sure to keep one of their most useful pieces, and Landry Shamet’s new deal stands out as one of the sharpest bargains in the league.
New York had already made clear it wasn’t going to push into the second apron, even if that meant breaking up a championship roster. That reality had fans on edge with a cluster of free agents on the board, including Mitchell Robinson, Jose Alvarado, Jordan Clarkson, Mohamed Diawara, and Shamet.
Robinson was the only one to leave. The rest came back on what can only be called team-friendly contracts, with Shamet’s sitting near the top of the value list.
Early in free agency, the Knicks brought Shamet back on a four-year, $24 million deal. For a player who had to beat out Garrison Mathews and the retired Malcolm Brogdon in training camp just to land a roster spot last year, that’s quite a rise. Shamet, an eight-year veteran, ended up logging 23.0 minutes per game in the regular season and 16.3 in the playoffs.
The money tells the story. Shamet will make a little less than $5.5 million in 2026-27, which would rank him as only the 262nd-highest-paid player in the league next season. That’s hard to square with what he gave New York during its championship run.
He was better than Gary Trent Jr. last season, yet the Milwaukee Bucks gave Trent a four-year, $64 million contract, a move that has left plenty of people wondering what Milwaukee was thinking. Shamet, meanwhile, delivered when the lights were brightest.
In the Knicks’ four-game sweep of the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2026 Eastern Conference Finals, he caught fire from deep and somehow hit 91.7% of his 3-point tries, going 11-for-12. His 3-pointer with 45 seconds left in Game 1 tied the game and helped fuel an overtime comeback.
What makes the contract even more appealing is the security it gives Shamet now. The Knicks are his sixth NBA team, and he no longer has to live with the uncertainty of bouncing around the league.
He has grown into a better defender, has long been a well-above-average shooter from outside, and keeps finding ways to get free through off-ball movement. For New York, that’s a useful player at a very manageable price.
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