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David Fizdale on Knicks Re-Signing Michael Beasley: 'I'm Kinda out of the Loop'
July 5, 2018
Michael Beasley may ultimately return to the New York Knicks, but new head coach David Fizdale isn't the one to ask about that possibility, as he told Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic:
Mike Vorkunov @MikeVorkunovDavid Fizdale said the Knicks are "still looking to do a few things. I know we still got a little room to do some things" in free agency. When asked if there's a chance of re-signing Michael Beasley, he says to ask GM Scott Perry because "right now I’m kinda out of the loop.”
Beasley should be a solid pickup for whichever team ultimately signs him. The 29-year-old forward averaged 13.2 points and 5.6 rebounds in 74 games (30 starts) for the Knicks last season, shooting 39.5 percent from three and 50.7 percent from the field.
Given the Knicks' offseason moves, however, it's hard to see the team bringing back Beasley.
They drafted Kevin Knox, a combo forward who will surely be given regular playing time. Per ESPN.com's Adrian Wojnarowski and Ian Begley, they agreed to a deal with Mario Hezonja, a small forward who underachieved for most of his tenure in Orlando but showed promise last season and has the upside to be a very nice player if he puts it all together. In Knox and Hezonja, the Knicks have two players younger than Beasley whose potential they'll be trying to tap into next season.
And with Kristaps Porzingis likely to miss a large chunk of the season as he recovers from a torn ACL, the Knicks should focus on getting their young players like Knox, Hezonja and Frank Ntilikina as much playing time as possible rather than instituting the sort of win-now philosophy that would favor playing someone like Beasley more minutes.
Plus, from a practical perspective, the Knicks have 15 players under contract and don't have any wiggle room under the cap outside of using the non-Bird exception ($3 million) to retain Beasley, per Marc Berman of the New York Post.
If Beasley is seeking a bigger payday than that, it will be coming elsewhere, barring the Knicks making other moves to clear cap space.
