With limited roster and cap space, the Knicks made a pretty big gamble about a year ago in free agency.
While using their mid-level exception on Guerschon Yabusele would prove to ultimately be riskier, it was pretty eye-opening to see the team sign Jordan Clarkson, a high-usage, low-shot-quality microwave scorer who had played on a destitute Utah Jazz team for the last three seasons.
But what the team wanted from him was objectively different than what he had been his entire career. They needed his scoring punch, sure, but they wanted him to be a team player on both ends as a contributing role player. Selfish play, low-quality shots, and poor defensive effort weren’t acceptable here.
It wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows for Clarkson in New York. He had stretches of brilliance, most notably a strong December, but was also kicked out of the rotation in late January due to his lack of effort.
It was an experiment. Would the grizzled veteran who isn’t used to winning basketball buy in?
When he got his next opportunity, he seized it by doing everything Mike Brown could’ve asked for. The consummate selfish role player bought in and became a champion.
Fast forward to this offseason, and while the Knicks certainly haven’t ruled out bringing him back next year, it seems like they could go another direction in bringing in one more guard or wing to the roster.
You look at the bench, which is very similar to last year’s, and it looks good, but it lacks the self-created scoring ability that Clarkson possessed. Could they look for a similar archetype?
Well, fortunately for the Knicks, they’ll have options. Outside of Clarkson, there are interesting names on the free agent and buyout market that could fit his role, but with the added risk of buy-in once again.
Bradley Beal and DeMar DeRozan were both once stars of the game. In the late 2010s, they were staples of the Wizards and Raptors, perennially gaining all-star and All-NBA consideration despite their teams always stagnating.
In both of their careers, they stagnated. Their teams grew frustrated with the lack of progress and sent them away. DeRozan was the sacrificial lamb so that Toronto could win a title with Kawhi Leonard. Beal was sent to Phoenix at a low point in his value so Washington could tank. Both of them have steadily declined since, but have still been in different situations entering this offseason.
Beal is coming off a major injury after planning to be a complementary starter on the Clippers in 2025-26, while DeRozan has gotten his numbers up on a truly horrible Kings team that’s going nowhere. While Beal is a free agent now entering his age-33 season, DeRozan is a buyout candidate nearing his 37th birthday. Despite their difference in age, both feel equally close to the end of their NBA careers without any playoff glory to speak of.
Could either be a candidate to join the Knicks’ bench on a vet min?
It all boils down to their willingness to become a team player.
Being unsigned nearly a week into free agency likely means Beal would have to latch on somewhere as a backup anyway, and for a guy who’s never even made the Conference Finals, you’d think he’d be enticed to get an opportunity on a contender.
He’d likely be a better true role player than many think, despite his defensive weaknesses. He’s improved greatly as a shooter since leaving Washington, shooting 40.5% from downtown on 4.6 attempts per game since 2023-24 while becoming a steadier secondary playmaker. He’s also been fairly efficient for a high-usage guard, something that was a major wart on Clarkson’s resume.
The weaknesses are, of course, shoddy defense and his recent injury issues. He’s not terribly old but has played in just 59 total games over the last two seasons. He last played more than 60 games in 2018-19 and is coming off a broken hip. He might be a good fit as a true role player at this point in his career, but there are still major warts that likely give teams pause.
The other option would be DeRozan, contingent on the Kings buying him out. He’s the opposite of what Beal has become over the last few years, continuing to be a high-usage, mid-range maestro. Last year was the first time in 13 years he averaged under 20 points a game, but still averaged 18.4 on nearly 50% from the field.
Clarkson was never a DeRozan-esque offensive player, but he played like DeRozan in his sixth man role for a long time. Their shot diets aren’t conducive to modern basketball; both are shoddy three-point shooters, and neither has ever seen a shot they don’t like. DeRozan isn’t as reckless as Clarkson and has always been turnover-averse, but his style of basketball hasn’t correlated with winning much.
Aside from a long playoff run in 2016 with the Raptors, he’s never gone deeper than an uncompetitive second-round series. In the last seven years, he has one playoff series to his name. He’s also never been anything but a high-usage starter, coming off the bench just 12 times in his career (all as a rookie in 2009-10). His 13.1 FGA/g in 2025-26 were his lowest in 16 years.
The perk of DeRozan is that he would immediately become the second-best self-creating scorer on the team. A few other players can get their own shots, but none can do it quite like DeRozan, other than the captain. He’s also consistently been one of the best clutch scorers in basketball, finishing top three in Clutch Player of the Year voting in 2024 and 2025. This could give the Knicks a secondary option in closing offensive lineups to Brunson’s iso ball.
The downside is self-explanatory. He’d be a 15-20-minute role player, something he’s never been in his career. He hasn’t been a reliable defender in a long time. He has the exact same worries you might have with Clarkson last season, except with the added distinction of him being a five-time All-Star with an ego he’d have to check at the door to join a championship-caliber operation.
All of this aside, they could also just bring back Clarkson, who reinvented himself to prolong what was looking like a fleeting career midway through last season. Their current cap situation will likely see two more players signed, with one being a third center.
Is this the archetype they should hunt? They should at least think about it.
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