Part 4 of the offseason guides gives up two Eastern Conference teams looking to make a splash in different ways
New York Knicks
The New York Knicks made history as this season was the first time they made it to the Eastern Conference finals in 25 years. Their bold moves last offseason trading away Donte DiVincenzo, Julius Randle, and 5 first-round picks to bring in Karl Anthony-Towns and Mikal Bridges. This formed one of the most potent lineups in the NBA, as they had an offensive rating near 118 for most of the regular season. However, the defensive issues were glaring. Both Karl Anthony-Towns and Mial Bridges caught some heat for their subpar performances, especially Bridges, given the draft equity tied to him in the trade. Nonetheless, the Knicks made it to the Eastern Conference finals, defeating the upstart Pistons in 6 games and the defending champion Boston Celtics in 6 games as well. However, the high-riding Knicks eventually fell to the Pacers in 6 games. So how do the Knicks get back to the Eastern Conference finals and potentially farthing?
The first shocking offseason move was the Knicks firing head coach Tom Tibbeaudo. The 2021 coach of the year brought New York to its promised land for the first time in a quarter century, but that still didn’t satisfy management. Tibbs, known for his taxing minutes on the starters, saw the misuse of his supposed bench depth eventually lead to his firing. The next season will likely operate in the second apron with the larger salaries of Karl Anthony-Towns and OG Anunoby. Jalen Brunson decided to sign his extension last season and left close to $100 million on the table, but that was likely to make room for Mikal Bridges, who is extension-eligible. I would be shocked if the Knicks do not extend Bridges, given the draft capital out the door in the trade with the Nets. Mitchell Robinson is also extension-eligible as he could be playing this season on an expiring deal, and Karl Anthony-Towns is sneaky extension-eligible, while also maintaining a $61 million player option in 2027-2028. The Knicks only have a singular first-round pick available to trade in the year 2030. If the Knicks want to improve the roster through adding a player above a minimum deal, it will likely occur through a trade involving Bridges, Robinson, and Hart. The combined salaries of those three, totaling $57 million, give the Knicks access to match salaries, but they must stay below the second apron. The second apron is currently at $207 million, with the Knicks' current salary being $204 million.
The Knicks hired Mike Brown to be the team’s next head coach, a move I like. He’ll hopefully bring some offensive juice and creativity to them. Overall, I like the signings of Guerschon Yabuesele and Jordan Clarkson. While Clarkson and Yabuesele aren’t known for the defense, it’ll bring some more punch to the Knicks' bench, an area that Mike Brown can use effectively. Clarkson will also give New York another guy to give the ball to for some shot creation, as he is no longer bogged down by the Utah Jazz management, making up for injuries to keep him out of the lineup. The development of last year’s draft picks, Tyler Kolek and Pacome Dadiet, will be a necessity as well. They’ll help the bench unit, and I think Kolek will bring some more creativity to the offense, too. Overall, New York is in a good spot, maybe by come deadline, they decide to add some pieces. I’d like to see some more help on the perimeter for defense, but with a team capped at the second apron and a league that hoards those types of players, they likely won’t be available to the Knicks. Still, New York should feel very good about where they are compared to the rest of the Eastern Conference.
Charlotte Hornets
The last couple of seasons haven’t been kind to the Hornets. They’ve had 21 and 19 wins and nothing really to show for it other than a pair of top-5 picks, in Brandin Miller and Kon Knueppel. The Hornets had a frisky start when both LaMelo Ball and Brandin Miller were healthy. Tre Mann, coming off the bench, seemed pretty fun before a herniated disk in his back limited him to 13 games this season, and Moussa Diabate seemed to grab every possible rebound as well. They had a weird stretch with Mark Williams, where he was traded to the Lakers, but failed a physical and then came back and put together a strong end of the season, before being traded again on draft night. So, what does all of this mean for the Hornets?
To start, Charles Lee has put in a clear objective offensively for the team, and shot a ton of threes. The Hornets were near the top of the league in 3-pointers attempted; however, bottom 10 in percentage and even worse in offensive rating. Lee comes from the Boston coaching tree that plays a math game in saying 3 is worth more than 2, so we’re going to take a ton of the threes. While the personnel is almost in place for the philosophy, the Hornets probably need to hone in on some of the long-range attempts they are taking. LaMelo Ball is one in particular. While Ball’s scoring went up, the shooting numbers weren’t pretty, and he led the league for most of the early season in shots per game and threes per game; however, he only shot 41% from the field and nearly 33% from 3. While the free throw rate early in the season seemed to climb to a respectable number, it later fell as he became in love with the 3-point attempts. Ball is the type of player who could become very successful in this offense, though. The Hornets play a frenetic pace that is adapted around Ball’s vision and playmaking. He’s a unique player with his size being 6’7 and an ability to make every pass possible, but it seems he fell a little too in love with the 3-point attempts and shooting the ball a lot. He also got into some habits defensively, reaching and picking up some poor fouls as well. Ball is the clear candidate to help the Hornets win, and he’ll have to improve in these areas.
The next focus should be getting a center. The Hornets currently only have two on the roster and have signed nothing but guards in cree agency. They shipped Jusuf Nurkic off the Jazz for some draft capital and haven’t engaged with signing anyone since, except Mason Plumlee, congrats, Plum dog. Outside of the center spot, the Hornets will likely take another year to focus on player development. They had a very productive draft that included Liam McNeely, Sion James, and Ryan Kalkbrenner, along with top-5 selection Kon Knueppel. McNeely and Knueppel’s shooting should pair well with Ball’s passing. Kalkbrenner will likely see a lot of time as a rookie from a mere necessity to have him out there, and James boosted some needed versatility on both ends of the floor. The development of Brandin Miller will also need to take a jump. The number 2 overall pick in the 2023 draft struggled with a wrist injury that kept him out at points last season. However, the ability to become a versatile scorer, I think, is much needed for Charlotte from him. He’s a below-average driver and finisher at the basket, coupled with the fact that he does not draw a lot of fouls on those drives. Outside of development, the Hornets will stay below the tax threshold of $187 million in salary this season and will likely facilitate trades for added draft capital. They’ve accumulated 10 first-round picks over the next 7 years and will receive picks from the Mavericks and Jazz over the next couple of seasons. However, it’s looking like another season of rebuilding for Charlotte, as they own their first-round pick in 2026 with a chance to select AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, or Cameron Boozer with some lottery luck. Good luck this season, Hornet fans, you’ll probably need it.
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