Ochai Agbaji Might Already Be in Preseason Danger With Knicks

Time waits for no man, especially not when other men are after his job

Ochai Agabji has his Knicks work cut out for him. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Life moves fast. The NBA may move even faster. Take Ochai Agbaji. 

Twelve months ago, Agbaji had three years of experience under his belt, nearly half of his games coming as a starter. He was coming off his best campaign yet with Toronto, where he'd averaged double-digit scoring while draining 40% of his three.

But where is he one year later? Potentially the first domino to fall as the Knicks figure out their end-of-the-rotation decisions after his lackluster preseason opener showing.

It’s a numbers game, and he's started off on the wrong foot

The Knicks are pretty set 1-12, rotation-wise: the five starters, Andre Drummond, Miles McBride, Landry Shamet, Jordan Clarkson, Mohamed Diawara, Tyler Kolek and Pacome Dadiet. That leaves one, maybe two spots still available.

The odds are against Agbaji, if for no other reason than the level of competition at his position. After Josh Hart, Mikal Bridges, Deuce, Shamet and Clarkson, plus additional candidates Bruce Brown, Kevin McCullar Jr. and Dadiet, Agbaji is probably the ninth man at his position. How many smaller wings is New York likely to carry? How many of those ahead of him is he likely to surpass? 

Even if Agbaji plays the best ball of his life the rest of the preseason, he’s still cut his work cut out for him trying to make the Knicks. Tuesday night he had one point and one rebound in eight minutes against the 76ers, missing all three of his thee-point tries. That is not the best ball of his life. And the preseason is as cutthroat a time as any.

So not only is all that Agbaji didn’t do fresh in the coaching staff’s minds, the positives seen from all the players he’s fighting with for his job are.

Ochai Agbaji already falling flat compared to Knicks' other reserves

Mike Brown played 20 different Knicks against the 76ers, more than Tom Thibodeau probably did his five seasons combined coaching the team. But while Brown is clearly more flexible than his predecessor, not all minutes are distributed equally.

Of those 20 Knicks to suit up, only two played fewer minutes than Agbaji. Tony Bradley did a fair Bill Cartwright impression in his six minutes, while Drew Eubanks was indisputably both bipedal and carbon-based in his.

It stands to reason the Knicks, short on tallness, are higher on Andre Drummond and James Wiseman than the smaller and less-proven Eubanks and Bradley. It stands to reason they played the players they’re higher on more, and the ones they’re lower on less.

So what does that say for Agbaji? The coaching staff is more familiar with virtually everyone else competing with him for a roster spot, and yet they were content seeing less from him than the rest.

It’s just one game; it’s just a preseason game. But if the Knicks really were desperate for another wing and remotely enthused by any of what they’ve seen from Agbaji, they probably would have given him more than eight minutes to audition. 

Five’s alive, four’s a chore

Once upon a time, an elite defense was a requirement for any team that fancied itself a title contender. Then came the era of the Big Threes, where the totality of a team’s starpower was what separated the champs from the chaff. In today’s game, the keyword is “balance.” Any team worth its salt is only as strong as their weakest link.

Recent champions like Boston, Oklahoma City and last year New York were basically fool-proof; the Celtics, the team the Knicks built themselves to beat, brought the league to its knees with a rotation of two-way talents. Last year the Knicks were that team. Agbaji might not fit that ideology.

While he did make 40% of his three in 2025, the seasons before and after he shot just 30% and 27% from deep. Agbaji was one of only four Knicks who didn’t score Tuesday night, but the other three won’t concern the team any.

McBride’s proven himself enough over the years that no one’s gonna care that he got shut out. Tyler Nickel is a late second-round pick who's getting acclimated. Eubanks didn’t score either, par for the course for an eight-year pro who’s never averaged better than seven points a game. Nor is Eubanks someone New York would run plays for; if he’s putting up shots, they’re either putbacks or someone’s set him up for a dunk or lay-in.

No one anticipates Agbaji being on the floor in critical playoff moments. Then again, 12 months ago no one would have guessed Jose Alvarado and Jeremy Sochan would be on the floor for New York with the title on the line.

If Agbaji can shoot like he did two years ago in Toronto, he could preserve the Knicks’ spacing, the key to their offense. He doesn't offer the versatility of a Bruce Brown, nor the ballhandling chops of a Jordan Clarkson. Agbaji has to shoot well if he's going to make it in New York.

If not? The league moves fast. Someone will take a chance on Agbaji. But if he can’t fit in with the champs seamlessly, sooner than later, that chance will have to wait for someone else to offer him.

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