Landry Shamet remains under heavy consideration to fill the Knicks’ available opening for a veteran’s minimum contract, according to Stefan Bondy of the New York Post. Shamet was a key reserve for the club last season, appearing in 50 games. Shamet has reportedly been working out in New York while hoping to re-sign with the Knicks.
In a report from Marc Stein earlier on Monday, the NBA insider declared that Ben Simmons turned down an offer from the Knicks. Another prominent free agent, Malik Beasley, is a longshot to sign with them, according to Bondy, who names Malcolm Brogdon as another possibility for that veteran contract.
We have more from the Eastern Conference:
- The fact that restricted free agent Cam Thomas signed his $6MM qualifying offer means he’s not in the Nets’ plans beyond this season, Erik Slater of ClutchPoints.com writes. Despite some gaudy offensive numbers, Thomas is an undersized, shoot-first guard who has been a poor defender throughout his career, Slater adds. The QO comes with a no-trade clause but the Nets now have little incentive to offer Thomas a featured role this season, which could complicate his market next summer, Slater notes.
- Bucks fans who answered a survey conducted by The Athletic’s Eric Nehm have little faith that the team will the NBA championship this season. Out of 690 responses, 81.2 percent were either “Not that confident” or “Not at all confident” that the Bucks will win it all. Bucks fans remain high on GM Jon Horst, as 83.1 percent said they were either “Extremely confident” or “Somewhat confident” in him. The same could not be said of coach Doc Rivers, as 62.7 percent expressed little or no confidence in him.
- Bulls coach Billy Donovan was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame over the weekend. Now, Donovan must show he’s a Hall of Fame coach by finally turning the Bulls into a true playoff contender, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun Times opines.