OG Anunoby free agency: Knicks willing to go to any lengths to re-sign star forward
OG Anunoby free agency: Knicks willing to go to any lengths to re-sign star forward
The New York Knicks aren't going to let OG Anunoby go easily.
Anunoby is likely to decline a $19 million player option for next season to become an unrestricted free agent this summer. As one of the league's premier 3-and-D forwards, Anunoby figures to have plenty of suitors willing to pay him a big contract.
However, the Knicks have the ability to match any contract for Anunoby and offer him more with a fifth contract year. The Knicks, who traded for Anunoby in January, have known what it will take to re-sign the 26-year-old forward.
So, despite rumors that Anunoby wasn't "thrilled" with early contract offers from the Knicks, The Athletic's Fred Katz believes the Knicks will still do whatever it takes to re-sign Anunoby.
"I expect the Knicks to go to whatever lengths they need to go to retain OG Anunoby," Katz said on his "Katz and Shoot" podcast. "They know what they gave up for him. They know they can't lose him for nothing."
It's not clear what the Knicks have offered Anunoby yet. There's a belief that his next contract could range from a starting salary of $35 million a year to a max contract. (Our prediction was four years, $170 million).
As Katz noted, the Knicks' ability to go higher than any other team makes them the frontrunner to re-sign Anunoby.
"OG is going to get paid," Katz said. "The rules are engineered so that the Knicks are in the best position to do it. They can offer an extra year. They can offer 8% [annual] raises when nobody else can offer more than 5% raises. A max from another team is four [years] for $182 [million]. That's like Philadelphia's max: four for 182. The Knicks' max is five [years] for $245 [million]. So, the Knicks don't have to offer him the max. The Knicks can say, 'Hey, we'll offer you the extra year and we'll give you more guaranteed money than another team's max offer. We can offer you five for $200 [million]' ... The Knicks would be offering $18 million more guaranteed in their offer."
Of course, the one asterisk is if Anunoby simply wants to leave New York to play on another team. The Knicks can't prevent him from doing that, like a team can in restricted free agency. Indeed, Yahoo's Jake Fischer reported that there have been rumblings that Anunoby wants a bigger offensive role and felt limited in New York.
It's worth noting that Anunoby finished third in field goal attempts per game in January (after the Knicks acquired him and while he and Julius Randle were healthy) and third in field goal attempts per game in the playoffs.
It's also worth noting that Anunoby would likely be a third scoring option on the two biggest threats to lure him away in free agency, the Philadelphia 76ers and Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Knicks' bet is that their ability to pay Anunoby more money will overcome any hesitations he may have about his role. From the sounds of it, the Knicks are aware they may have go to greater lengths to prevent Anunoby from leaving.