Knicks Signing IMMINENT – All Signs Point to This…

Knicks Signing IMMINENT – All Signs Point to This…

A New York Knicks signing is imminent as all signs point to this as there have been a lot of questions about the New York Knicks and who they are going to use these final roster spots on and now it is clear what the New York Knicks will be doing in the coming days and we’re going to break it all down. What’s up guys? Welcome back to Nicks Digest. It’s Chris here. We’re going to jump right into things as usual. If you guys are part of that 66% that’s not subscribed to Nick’s Digest, make sure to subscribe. probably got daily Knicks videos like this that you do not want to miss out on. But all that being said, let’s jump into the video. A lot to go over as Leon Rose and the Knicks have a tough decision to make. They have two roster spots left for this team. One of them is a veterans minimum deal and that will likely be filled by one of Ben Simmons or Landry Shamid. Meanwhile, they have a rookie deal as well to fill and that has been between a few different players, but now it’s clear that it’s a twoman race. And that race is between none other the Knicks second round pick in 2025, Muhammad Diawara and draft and stash prospect James Naji. These are the two guys who are the finalists for that spot right now. And one of the two will end up being a New York Knick on a full-time contract, while the other one will fight for a two-way contract that just to be clear, the other one who does not get the full-time roster spot, the the rookie minimum deal, will almost certainly get that two-way deal. So, we’re going to jump right into that and also talk about another prospect as well and also very quickly highlight a different one right now. In regards to Anton Watson, who is or who was on a two-way last year and is on this Knicks summer league team, I highly do not expect Anton Watson to get another two-way deal. I do expect Anton Watson to play on the Westchester Knicks, their G-League affiliate, but I would not expect Anton Watson to get a two-way contract. I just wanted to mention that because there’s no way that anyone wants to hear me do a full video on that. So, I want to throw it in right now just to mention. But let’s talk about this because it is between Diwara and Naji at this point. Both of whom have very good arguments for the position. Starting off with the one who was drafted this year, Muhammad Diawara. Diawara was selected by this Knicks team. That already gives him a jolt as well as the fact that he is younger and more versatile. He could play the three, he could play the four, he could play the five. He’s really anywhere belongs in the front court right now. And because of that, and also the Knicks did draft him. They didn’t acquire him in a trade the way that they did with James Naji. Many will look towards Muhammad Diawara as the guy who the Knicks would probably favor in this situation. However, on the other hand, there’s James Naji. The Knicks acquired James Naji from the Charlotte Hornets when they traded Dwayne Washington Jr. along with Dcoin Jeff to make that cat trade work, which they desperately needed to do. They pulled that off. They got James Naji as the return there. So, because the Hornets had to give him something, Naji didn’t count towards the salary cap. So they gave him James Naji for their services. Now Naji played overseas with Barcelona and is more NBA ready. He’s older. He is a true center, so he would give the Knicks rim protection. Mitchell Robinson has dealt with injuries in the past. And right now when it comes down to it, the Knicks have a few guys on this team who could play center. They have Carl Anthony Towns who will likely be playing more power forward as I expect Mitchell Robinson to start, but that’s not totally guaranteed yet. There’s no starting lineup as of right now. Obviously, we’ll see what Mike Brown ends up doing with that. But on top of that, outside of Towns and Mitchell Robinson, we have Ariel Huckporti and Gershan Yabisale. Those are the guys on the roster who can play center. Now, if the Knicks do bring on Diawara, he can play center, but he would definitely be in over his head, at least at the beginning, considering he is very young. Naji’s 21 years old and is a very, very, very, very, very good offensive rebounder. So, there is going to be a chance that he does end up in this situation as well, which is important to note. But he’ll also again one of these guys is going to be on a two-way contract. So if it’s Naji, they could play him there. And if they want to play Dior at some point on two-way, but also develop him in the G-League, they could do that. It just depends on a lot of these on a lot of these intangible situations right here on stuff that some of them Naji and Dior can control, other stuff they cannot control. And look on top of that, we look at Naji, he is definitely going to be the better, more impactful player today. So that does add something to it. However, just taking a look at all this whole situation with the Knicks drafted Dior, he has a longer standing reach than the NBA average. He’s I mean, the average be ahead is now down to 6’5. Wow. Um, and he’s without shoes, that is. And Dawara without shoes, 6’7. He’s got a wingspan of 7 foot4. He’s got a standing vertical that’s around league average. A max vertical leap a little bit above league average. And then his lane agility is around league average. A little bit slower for sure. And then the 3-4th sprint is a little bit below average as well. Mohamdara has been time and time again compared to Pascal Seiakum. That is kind of the best comparison for him as he can play a multitude of roles when he’s younger and he’s very raw. So, it’s going to take some time before we see Diorara fully in action wherever he goes. But just looking at James Naji right now, he’s someone who was a very talented player overseas. Didn’t get a ton of minutes. And obviously production has to be viewed differently because there’s a lot less possessions in the overseas league. Meanwhile, when it comes down to Dawara, he’s someone who again, you have to take the stats with a grain of salt. He didn’t play a ton of minutes until last year where he did finally get some minutes. Put up around six points and three rebounds a night. Showed some definitely showed some skill for sure. Shot 45% from two-point range. Free throw shooting was not there at all, but very limited and everything. So these numbers all have to be taken with a grain of salt and their overseas numbers are not really going to have much of an impact on who ends up getting signed. Now so far into summer league, Muhammad Diwara, who’s played three games, then missed one with a bit of an injury. Nothing serious, just a soreness. He averaged 6.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.3 assists with a steal as well. Shot 42% from the field and 12.5% from three and very limited attempts and 33% from the free throw line, which is definitely worrisome, but three attempts, so you know, it’s nothing major. Now, on top of all that, we see James Naji, who has been in the summer league a bit in the past, but his minutes went down from last time around when he played in the 23 24 summer league. He played in six games cuz they the Hornets were in the California Classic as well, where he played a game and he averaged a total of four points and six rebounds with two blocks per game and shot 67% from the field. Now, with the Knicks, he only averaged around 10 minutes per game, going down by seven and put up three points and two rebounds with really nothing else. That’s huge. He hasn’t missed a shot, which is cool. So, there’s that, but obviously limited attempts, shooting 57% from the free throw line. It’s very, very close. It is. It’s very close right now where we look at everything. And on top of that, Dink Pate has really made an argument for himself to get that rookie deal. Putting up seven points, five and a half rebounds, three assists, and shooting 45% from three. Now, field goal percentage is bad. That’s why I left it out, but it’s I’m we’re highlighting the good stuff here. And so Dink Pate has given himself a real argument to take this spot from Naji or Diawara. And the Knicks are going to have to make a tough decision where Dink Pate is now sort of in the running. He’s definitely like it’s kind of like these two are up here and then Dink Pate all the way down here. So it’s important to note, but the one who’s higher I had it like this. The one who’s higher, Mohamed Dawara. Diara is the favorite to get this job. Don’t get it twisted. I would be pretty surprised if it’s not Muhammad Diawara. I think the Knicks like Dior a lot as a prospect and think that he’s a long-term project pick that they could use along with Pakome Doier. The Knicks want to figure out a way to be good when they don’t have draft picks. Developing guys like Diara, like Paint, like Dier, Paint, Paint, like Dier, all them. Developing guys like that into actually serviceful players is going to be huge because you either use them or you could use them as trade bait. So, you’re going to have a use for them later. I’m not saying James Naji is not going to have a use for him at some point with the Knicks. That’s not at all what I’m saying. But I do think because the Knicks did draft Diwara, considering he’s two years younger, I think they will look for Muhammad Diwara to be their guy over James Nagi. And I do think that James Naji is going to get that two-way deal over Dink Pate because Marjon Bochamp’s going to get a two-way contract and Kevin McCuller Jr. is locked into getting a two-way contract. So, are they really going to have three forwards and wings be the uh be all your two-ways? No, it doesn’t make sense to me. What makes sense to me is the Knicks using James Naji. But the argument for Pate getting it is Pate probably will garner more interest if he’s just hanging in the G- League and a team wants to sign him. Now, if the Knicks do end up going with Pate over Naji, they can use Naji in 10day contracts here and there if there’s injuries that happen. But if there’s a longer scale injury and they think they’re going to need James Naji, things would get a little bit difficult. And by that, I mean they would have to cut someone off of a two-way deal and replace them with Naji. But the Knicks are going to have all three of those guys in the system with their team. I love Dink Pate. I think he’s got a ton of potential. Juan Tesano Anderson said the same thing that he thinks he’s going to be a future NBA star. So, I want to I want to hear from you guys. Really, who do you think should get that rookie contract? Also, let me know what you think is going to happen. But, if you’re Leon Rose, what are you doing? Who gets that rookie deal? Who gets that two-way contract? And who’s in the G-League trying to fight for a contract out of Muhammad Diaware, James Naji, and Dick and oops, that won’t pick up as a curse, I don’t think. And Dink Pay. I mean, at least I didn’t call him like dick plate or something because I I both I’ve now both called him dick three times, which is a short for Richard. I’m not, you know, and then on top of that, I’ve called him plate and paint. So, I didn’t call him dick paint. That’d be funny. All right, I should probably stop saying that on this. Uh, I’m getting a little flushed now because I curse. I never curse on this. I curse on happy hour, but not on this. I’m I blame my cool shirt, the Doobie Brother shirt that I’m wearing. Uh, you guys don’t need to hear any of this, but for the record, I do think it’s going to be Dior, Naji, and Pate in that order. Dior, NBA, Naji 2-way, Pate GLeague. Let me know your guys three. Have a great day. Like, subscribe, turn on post notifications, consider becoming a channel member if you want to hear me curse more. I’m kidding. Don’t. I’m not going to. Have a great day and go Nix.

Chris Gallagher breaks down the Knicks signing plans.

Knicks Digest is a YouTube channel dedicated to covering all the latest news, trades, reports, and rumors surrounding the New York Knicks. We provide in-depth coverage on game highlights, player performances, and expert analysis of team strategies. Our channel features discussions on key players like Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, Mikal Bridges, and Mitchell Robinson, as well as insights from Head Coach Tom Thibodeau and the Knicks’ front office. Stay tuned for all the latest updates and engaging content on everything Knicks!

Join our Discord: https://discord.gg/MeVay9egPx

MORE FROM DIGEST MEDIA:
Raptors Digest: https://www.youtube.com/c/RaptorsDigest
Leafs Digest: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_EUKCfhWZLk0dX4XxQaZIA
Jays Digest: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUTv…
Knicks Digest: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8cYEIxnSZp9Mo93nQ_52Rg
Habs Digest: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvUG…
Courtside Digest: https://www.youtube.com/c/CourtsideDi…

NBA Trade Rumors, NBA Free Agency, NBA Draft, NBA Finals Preview, Fantasy Basketball Advice, NBA Betting Odds, NBA Jersey Review, Player Performance Breakdown, DraftKings NBA Picks, FanDuel NBA Strategy, Sports Analytics, NBA Highlights, NBA News Update, NBA Stats, NBA Roster Moves, NBA Predictions