Knicks Make Critical Decision on Contract for Big Man

The New York Knicks made a crucial decision regarding the contract of one of their big men last week. They have fully guaranteed the salary of center Jericho Sims for the 2024-25 NBA season.

Insider Michael Scotto of HoopsHype broke the news on social media.

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The New York Knicks center Jericho Sims will have his $2.09 million salary fully guaranteed for the 2024-25 season, league sources told @hoopshype. Sims has spent the past three seasons with the Knicks after being selected by New York with the 58th pick of the 2021 NBA Draft. pic.twitter.com/Fmg8msJb0V

— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) August 17, 2024

The Knicks had until last Friday to decide on guaranteeing the deal for Sims. They could have elected to partially guarantee him for $1.3 million if they had decided to waive him.

But Sims will make his $2 million this year from New York instead. The Knicks likely weighed the pros and cons of paying a player to not be on their roster and it wasn’t that much costlier for them to keep him around.

Sims played in 45 games for the Knicks a year ago, averaging 2.0 points and 3.3 rebounds per game. He only played in 13 minutes per contest as the former second-round pick was slotted deep on the New York bench.

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With New York losing starting center Isaiah Hartenstein to the Oklahoma City Thunder in free agency, Sims could see his role grow a little. He will still most likely slot in behind Mitchell Robinson and Precious Achiuwa on the Knicks’ depth chart, but he could see more playing time.

New York likely viewed Sims as a decent enough bench player who could come in to fill the few minutes that the primary big men were resting. He has been with the team for three seasons, so he knows the system that head coach Tom Thibodeau has put in place.

With the Knicks having title aspirations this season, Sims may not get too much time on the court. But for a player like Sims, it’s important to stay ready in case his name is ever called.

The Knicks finished last season as the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference, with a 50-32 record, and will be looking to push even further this year. They added in star forward Mikal Bridges to go along with All-Stars Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle, forward OG Anunoby, wing Josh Hart, and others.

New York is one of the deepest teams in the entire NBA, and the Knicks pride themselves on that fact. Thibodeau believes in having a system where the bench players can play meaningful minutes at different times if needed, giving some hope to the prospect of Sims this season.

Either way, he will get another chance to show the Knicks what he can do and he gives them some extra size on the bench.

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