Knicks Rumors: Steve Novak Will Give Knicks Much-Needed Deep Threat off Bench

The New York Knicks have their core in place. Carmelo Anthony, Amar'e Stoudemire and Tyson Chandler will do most of the heavy lifting, so the team is focused on adding depth. Forward Steve Novak, who is a three-point shooting specialist, would be a terrific fit.

Marc Berman of the New York Post reports the Knicks could sign him at some point on Wednesday:

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Steve Novak is expected to join the Knicks today. If the 6-foot-10 forward clears waivers today after getting cut by the Spurs, he will sign a one-year deal, according to an NBA source.

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Novak has bounced around the NBA, playing with four different teams during his five seasons. He's never averaged more than seven points per game, mostly due to a lack of playing time at each of his stops.

That said, he should be able to find a niche for himself in Mike D'Antoni's offense-first system.

The Knicks have been looking at backup forwards for a couple weeks, but haven't been able to settle on anybody. So when the San Antonio Spurs waived Novak, the rumor mill immediately started pointing him toward New York.

He connected on 57 percent of his three point attempts last season and has one of the purest shooting strokes you will see.

Even though he doesn't contribute in many other facets of the game, role players don't need to be all-around threats. They are brought in to serve a singular purpose and for Novak that will be to create some instant offense if the Knicks are lagging behind.

It's also being reported by Newsday's Alan Hahn that Novak will sign for the veteran's minimum, which will leave the team's $2.5 million exception should another useful player become available at some point. It's a smart move by the Knicks because the available options are weakening by the day.

Depth will become especially important during the middle of the season when the grind of a condensed schedule begins to catch up with every team. The squads that can keep winning on a consistent basis during that period will position themselves nicely for the playoffs.

So while a relevantly minor addition like Novak will go virtually unnoticed outside of Knicks fans, it should end up paying off in the long run. That is, of course, if D'Antoni gives him nightly playing time and he doesn't end up buried on the bench.

The shouldn't be a problem, however, because everybody knows how much the Knicks coach loves shooters.