Knicks Rumors: Taj Gibson, Wayne Ellington, Elfrid Payton Waived Ahead of FA

The New York Knicks reportedly waived multiple players Thursday ahead of the start of free agency Friday.

According to Marc Berman of the New York Post, the Knicks waived forward Taj Gibson and guard Wayne Ellington. Steve Popper of Newsday added that the Knicks also waived guard Elfrid Payton and forward Kenny Wooten in addition to declining the team option on forward Bobby Portis and not giving guard Damyean Dotson a qualifying offer, meaning Dotson is now an unrestricted free agent. 

The Knicks went on a signing spree last offseason, but maintained the flexibility to part with most of those players after one season if desired.

Gibson, Ellington and Payton all had only $1 million in guaranteed money apiece in their contracts for 2020-21, which is why the Knicks were able to part ways with them without taking on much of a financial commitment.

The 35-year-old Gibson appeared in 62 games for the Knicks last season, making 56 starts. He averaged 6.1 points and 4.3 rebounds, while shooting a career-best 58.4 percent from the field.

Taj Gibson Catches Fire for 10 Points

00:50

Gibson spent the first eight seasons of his career with the Chicago Bulls before getting traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder and then playing two seasons with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Since Gibson played under new Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau in both Chicago and Minnesota, he may be a candidate to re-sign with the Knicks at a lower price. Ian Begley of SNY reported there is "mutual interest" between the two sides.

Ellington, 32, played somewhat sparingly last season. He appeared in 36 games and averaged just 15.5 minutes per contest. Ellington also averaged 5.1 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.2 steals, and he shot 35.1 percent from the field and 35.0 percent from deep.

After making at least 2.4 three-pointers per game in each of the previous three seasons, Ellington made just 1.4 per game last season.

The 26-year-old Payton was the most productive player among those who were waived by the Knicks on Thursday. He started 36 of the 45 games he appeared in last season and averaged 10.0 points, 7.2 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 1.6 steals.

Elfrid Payton Goes Off for 18 Points

01:13

Payton was the 10th-overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft and played for the Orlando Magic, Phoenix Suns and New Orleans Pelicans over his first five NBA seasons before joining the Knicks.

After averaging a career-high 14.2 points and 8.1 rebounds per game with the Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards in 2018-19, Portis' playing time dropped in the deep Knicks frontcourt last season, and he averaged just 10.1 points and 5.1 rebounds in 66 contests.

Meanwhile, Dotson put up 6.7 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game in 48 appearances last season.

Wooten did not appear in a game for the Knicks during the 2019-20 campaign.

Any of the players who New York parted ways with Thursday could still be brought back, but they are all unrestricted free agents as of now.

The Knicks are set to enter free agency with a core that includes center Mitchell Robinson, forwards Julius Randle, RJ Barrett and Kevin Knox, and guard Frank Ntilikina, as well as draft picks Obi Toppin and Immanuel Quickley.