LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers defends against Jalen Brunson #11 of the New York Knicks.
THE New York Knicks The front office’s savvy management of their salary cap and asset hoarding have positioned themselves to acquire a superstar should he become available this summer.
According to ESPNNew York has the flexibility to form a Big 3 of LeBron James, Jalen Brunson And OG Anunoby this summer because the Knicks are better equipped than the Warriors of the Golden StateWHO interest recorded at the transaction deadlineshould he the Los Angeles Lakers the superstar becomes available.
James could opt out of his contract and then make a trade, but Golden State wouldn’t be allowed to send out any overall contracts if James’ $51.4 million salary pushed the Warriors over the second apron.
The Knicks, however, have the financial flexibility under both aprons to trade for James without losing Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby.
New York has five players (Julius Randle, Josh Hart, Mitchell Robinson, Bojan Bogdanovic and Donte DiVincenzo) earning salaries between $11.5 million and $30.3 million. They also have up to eight tradeable starters to include in a deal.
James stoked speculation about a potential move to the Knicks in the future in the days leading up to the Feb. 8 trade deadline. cryptic X messages to fold the Knicks napkin during a post-game interview after a Lakers victory in New York.
He even told reporters in New York that playing for the Knicks had already crossed his mind.
“During my free agency period in 2010, this was one of the teams I was watching,” James told reporters on February 3. “So I’ve had that thought in my career.”
LeBron James calls Jalen Brunson ‘phenomenal’
Before their Feb. 3 meeting at Madison Square Garden in which the Lakers beat a short-handed Knicks team 113-105, James praised Brunson, who went from a second-round pick to an All-Star point guard .
“He is phenomenal, James told reporters when asked about Brunson. “Super happy for him, super proud of him. All-Star for the first time. Considering his emotion after the last match, I think it’s just super cool. Super dope, very humble kid. I played against Rick [Brunson] Also. So it’s a little weird in that sense.
James has a $51.4 million player option for next season which he must resume or refuse by June 29.
The Knicks have not discussed adding LeBron James
According to a report from Athleticism on February 14, Knicks management did not respond to James’ overtures or develop a plan for a potential move.
Despite all the attention paid to James’ recent trip to New York, where he sent all sorts of pro-Knicks signals that sparked speculation about the Broadway-worthy possibility, a league source indicated that Knicks executives hadn’t discussed the prospect of adding James. Not only does the team not have the salary cap space required to make room for James this summer, but the idea of the Knicks taking steps to free up that kind of money would be viewed internally as a serious setback for their long-term plan. While that could always change, it’s telling that the Knicks haven’t responded to James’ myriad messages by heading straight to the proverbial war room to hatch a plan to bring him to the Big Apple.
Without cap space, the only path for the Knicks to acquire James is via sign-and-trade.
According to the same ESPN report, James can sign for the maximum allowed in the over-38 rule – a three-year, $167 million contract or a shorter $104 million 1+1 contract (player option second year).
Alder Almo is a basketball reporter who covers the New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors for Heavy. He has over 15 years of experience in local and international media, including broadcast, print and digital. He previously covered the Knicks for Empire Sports Media and the NBA for Off the Glass. Alder is originally from the Philippines and is now based in Jersey City, New Jersey. Learn more about Alder Almo
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