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The New York Knicks appear to be going all-in for impending free agent Jalen Brunson.
The Knicks are expected to offer Brunson a four-year, $110 million deal when free agency opens Thursday in an attempt to pry him away from the Dallas Mavericks, according to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.
The deal would pay Brunson $27.5 million annually. For comparison, Chris Paul is making $28.4 million per year with the Phoenix Suns and Kyle Lowry is making $28.3 million annually with the Miami Heat.
The most New York can offer Brunson is $131 million over four years, according to SNY’s Ian Begley.
That said, it’s unclear if the Mavericks would be willing to offer Brunson a similar deal. According to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, Dallas’ price point to re-sign the 25-year-old is $22 million per year or $110 million total value.
The maximum amount the Mavericks can offer Brunson is $175.45 million over five years, according to Spotrac. It’s hard to imagine the franchise offering him a deal worth $35.1 million annually when starting point guard Luka Doncic is estimated to make $36.6 million in 2022-23.
At one point, the Mavericks were confident in re-signing Brunson this summer, but it appears the franchise’s thoughts might have changed.
The Athletic’s Tim Cato reported earlier this week that the Mavericks have “anticipated” Brunson leaving for “weeks.” NBA insider Marc Stein also reported that “there is a growing resignation in Dallas, sources say, that the Knicks are indeed Brunson’s top choice and his inevitable destination.”
The Knicks have positioned themselves well to make a run at Brunson this summer. By trading Kemba Walker, Nerlens Noel and Alec Burks to the Detroit Pistons, the franchise has cleared $30 million in cap space, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
New York cleared $19 million by trading Noel, Burks and cash to the Pistons on Tuesday. The Knicks traded Walker, who is expected to negotiate a buyout, to the Pistons last week, which cleared $9 million.
The Knicks have been considered a landing spot for Brunson since before his father joined Tom Thibodeau’s coaching staff.
The franchise’s interest comes as little surprise, as he had a breakout 2021-22 season, averaging 16.3 points, 3.9 rebounds and 4.8 assists while shooting 50.2 percent from the floor and 37.3 percent from deep in 79 regular-season games
In addition, he averaged 21.6 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.7 assists while shooting 46.6 percent from the floor and 34.7 percent from deep in 18 playoff games.
If the Knicks fail to land Brunson this summer, it’s unclear how the team plans to deal with its point guard problem.
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