Heat Big Man Could Become Knicks Target
The New York Knicks are seeing their options at the center position thin with teams hopping on to signing big men early in free agency.
It all started when Isaiah Hartenstein signed a three-year, $87 million deal to leave the New York Knicks to join the Oklahoma City Thunder, setting a high market value and a domino effect in place.
Soon, big men started flying off the open market yesterday. The likes of Goga Bitadze, Mo Bamba, Mason Plumlee and others soon found teams, leaving the Knicks with the leftovers in free agency. Among the potential players for the Knicks to possibly sign is Miami Heat big man Thomas Bryant.
Bryant, who turns 27 later this month, is looking for potentially his fifth different team in five years. But, as a Rochester native, Bryant could look to return to his home state.
He was involved in a draft day trade with current Knicks forward Josh Hart to the Los Angeles Lakers, where the pair began their NBA careers. Bryant then began to bounce around the league after being traded to the Washington Wizards in 2018. He played four seasons for the Wizards, struggling to find consistency, before signing back with the Lakers two summers ago.
Since then, Bryant has become a globetrotter, heading to the Denver Nuggets in 2023 and winning a championship to joining the Heat in free agency last summer.
He played in just 38 games for the Heat this past season, averaging 5.7 points per game.
Bryant has been part of some good teams lately and he has seen what it takes to win an NBA championship, even if he wasn't part of the Nuggets' playoff rotation. Perhaps what he needs is an opportunity to play, and he'll shine. In his best season back in 2019-20, Bryant averaged 13.2 points and 7.2 rebounds across 46 games, so he has proven that he has talent to hang with in the NBA.
The Knicks have a unique opportunity where they need a center and they can give a player like Bryant, who hasn't played much as of late, a chance to get valuable minutes and a shot at winning another ring.
JEREMY BRENER
Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.