Knicks waive recently injured guard ahead of season opener

According to Shams Charania and Bobby Marks of ESPN, the New York Knicks have waived guard Landry Shamet after he suffered a dislocated shoulder in the pre-season. While the team has interest in bringing him back after he recovers, they choose to cut him loose for now as they will look internally to replenish the minutes he was projected to have. For now, the Knicks will stay at 12 standard players, but the NBA requires teams to have at least 14 standard players on their roster after the first two weeks of the season.

The Knicks have some potential two-way contracts they could convert into league-minimum salaries, as New York will look to shore up their depth chart after losing a veteran they held in high regard.

Landry Shamet Waived, Knicks Could Look Inward For Depth

In four pre-season games, Landry Shamet averaged 10.8 points per game with a +6.3 +/-, although his efficiency numbers were below average. Pre-season data isn’t entirely relevant, and the Knicks were more interested in his overall career numbers as a floor spacer who could help the team off of the bench.

Across 348 NBA games, Shamet has a 38.4% 3PT% on 4.9 attempts a game, as he was a reliable shooter for five different teams across seven seasons. Entering his age-27 season, his shoulder dislocation ended up being a much bigger blow to the Knicks than most envisioned.

He was seen as a potential rotation option for this team, but now the Knicks will have to look at some of their other low-cost players to find a bench scorer to pair with Miles McBride.

READ MORE: Knicks could scoop up sharpshooter recently cut by Celtics

Second-round pick Tyler Kolek is a popular pick to get rotation minutes as a playmaking point guard with a solid three-point shot. In four games, Kolek has averaged 11.5 points and 4.3 assists per game. Drafted out of Marquette by the Knicks in the 2024 NBA Draft, the 6’3 rookie has shown an excellent ability to score efficiently while being selfless and creating shots for other players.

He had a +9.1 Net Rating while having a 67.1% True Shooting Rate, and the Knicks could see him immediately earn rotation minutes due to this injury. Fellow New York rookie Pacôme Dadiet could also be in the mix for minutes after an excellent pre-season showing where he averaged 13 points per game on elite efficiency in his two contests.

On the veteran side of things, Cameron Payne is a potential bench-scoring options who could provide the Knicks with battle-tested shooting.

Payne, age 30, had an inefficient pre-season but has shown in his time as an NBA player that he’s a capable shooter who can help a contending team off the bench. He shot 39% from downtown last season with the Bucks and 76ers, and the Knicks are all too familiar with him after the veteran point guard hit 44.4% of his three-pointers in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs against them.

Time will tell if the Knicks decide to make another move or choose to roll internally, but they have some interesting options that could provide a spark if needed.