Knicks president Leon Rose is silent on his thinking, but getting a veteran star is a likely scenario

As the Knicks fought their way around the NBA Draft Thursday night, trading the No.19 pick from 21 to 25 and even falling back in the second round to pick up an additional pick, they weren’t acting like a team in the early stages of reconstruction.

Efforts to progress have been made and rejected, so if the Knicks were still building youthful pieces around their base, they might have stepped up and made those choices at 19 and 21, trying to fill in the gaps and focus on development. But they didn’t.

So what does this portend for Monday, when the NBA opens up the free agent market? The strategy laid out on Thursday could indicate that now is the time to take the next big step forward.

Since becoming team president in March 2020, Leon Rose has taken a patient approach, clinging to the flexibility of the team’s cap and racking up draft picks to add to the stock he has inherited. .

(The Knicks still have six first-round picks and nine second-rounds in the next four draft, which would drop to five firsts and 11 seconds if Charlotte’s future pick acquired when Rose sent No. 19 pick ultimately results in a pair of second turns.)

But after a 41-31 season, the No.4 seed in the Eastern Conference and a playoff spot after seven seasons with a coach who cherishes every regular season game as much as Game 7 of a final. NBA, the Knicks don’t want to take a step back.

With some teams devastated last season by COVID-19-related injuries and absences, the task will undoubtedly be more difficult this season. To maintain momentum, the Knicks need to improve.

Which brings us to Monday. When Rose and her right-hand man, William Wesley, went from agent to executive, celebrity relationships were key to their resumes. In her previous life as the head of the basketball division of Creative Artists Agency, Rose represented Chris Paul and Kyle Lowry, two of the possible prizes for free agents when the market opened.

Do you believe that after winning Coach of the Year honors for exceeding expectations, Tom Thibodeau will start the season with a roster that currently has Immanuel Quickley, Luis Vildoza and Miles McBride as starting point options?

Or do you think when Rose bided his time on Thursday he did so with a pretty good idea that he could maybe land Paul, Lowry, Lonzo Ball or Collin Sexton?

Paul has a $ 44 million option for the upcoming season, but even at 36 he could step aside and seek a cheaper deal for next season but in a longer term package – think three years and 90 million dollars to conclude his Hall of Fame career.

Russell Westbrook’s trade with the Los Angeles Lakers eliminates a contender, and in Paul’s case in particular, it could come down to just the Suns and Knicks chasing him.

Lowry, an unrestricted free agent, hasn’t absolutely severed ties with Toronto, where his number will likely be suspended one day, and his roster of contenders is likely much larger than Paul’s, including New Orleans, Miami. and Philadelphia.

But the Knicks have more money to spend than any other team (helped a bit by handing out this year’s No.19 pick). What they have are a handful of cheap assets – Quickley, Obi Toppin, Mitchell Robinson and Kevin Knox – along with the four players drafted on Thursday.

It wasn’t Rose’s problem or responsibility, but the deal price Kristaps Porzingis, who once hoped to be a Dallas lottery pick, became the 21st pick on Thursday (with a 2023 first round). Rose traded that No.21 pick for 25th place, where the Knicks secured the second-round pick from Quentin Grimes and Detroit in 2024. It’s not the kind of deal comeback Rose wants to be known for.

Rose and her front desk closed without comment before or after the moves. Even rival leaders say it’s hard to get a feel for what the team is planning. But even without a public statement, it’s clear that while Rose was brought here with the will to build slowly, last season changed all that.

The Knicks want to win now, and it won’t be easy. Even with the improvement from last season, Julius Randle and RJ Barrett need another veteran to help carry the load, and the work begins for Rose on Monday.