New Forward Target Emerges for Knicks

The New York Knicks will have to keep their eye on affordable, high-upside frontcourt players in free agency this summer.

With Isaiah Hartenstein and Precious Achiuwa hitting the open market, the Knicks could be in line to sign a young forward. That player could be Indiana Pacers forward Jalen Smith.

“There’s also an early belief that forward Jalen Smith will decline his $5.4 million player option and enter unrestricted free agency this summer, league sources told HoopsHype. No decision has been formally decided, but this has been the early indication,” HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto writes. 

Smith struggled to find a home at the start of his career with the Phoenix Suns, who were approaching title contention. In the middle of his second season in the league, Smith was traded to the Pacers, where he was able to flaunt his skills a little more. Now, in two full seasons with the Pacers, he’s been able to emerge as a formidable NBA player.

“Smith was one of the NBA’s most efficient backup bigs this season averaging 9.9 points and 5.5 rebounds on an elite 68.2 TS%,” Forbes writer Evan Sidery writes. “The No. 10 overall pick in the 2020 draft will likely command a strong market.”

The Knicks will look to try and find ways to keep their own free agents, but if they are unable to do so, Smith may be an affordable placeholder. The Pacers are unlikely to keep Smith with former Knick Obi Toppin and last year’s No. 8 overall pick Jarace Walker in the mix at the power forward position behind Pascal Siakam, whom the team acquired via trade in the middle of the season.

One man’s trash is another man’s treasure, and Smith could just be a better fit for the Knicks than the Pacers.

He still has potential to fill into, so there’s a chance he could get even better with the Knicks, and those are the kinds of players New York needs to target this summer.

That is how the Knicks went from cellar-dweller to contender in just a few years. They have targeted players with untapped potential who may have underperformed with their former teams. Smith fits that archetype, and if the Knicks are able to get the best out of him, it’s an easy way for New York to improve.

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