The New York Knicks traded center Nerlens Noel and guard Alec Burks to the Detroit Pistons — clearing $19 million in salary-cap space — and are now able to make an overwhelming contract offer in the neighborhood of $110 million to free-agent guard Jalen Brunson.
The Knicks included two future second-round picks and $6 million to incentivize the trade, sources said, and they now have approximately $30 million in cap space to make a massive four-year offer to Brunson. The offloading of players and assets to create the space clearly reflects the Knicks’ confidence they can reach an agreement with Brunson sometime after the opening of free agency.
Brunson, 25, is coming off a breakout season in which he averaged 16.3 points and 4.8 assists per game, establishing himself as the Dallas Mavericks’ No. 2 option behind All-NBA guard Luka Doncic, his 2018 draft classmate, after joining the starting lineup on a full-time basis in December.
The Knicks are trading Nerlens Noel & Alec Burks to the Pistons, clearing more than $19M in cap space, which clears the way to pursue a sign and trade for Jalen Brunson
NY is also sending Detroit their 2023 second-rounder back, a 2024 second-rounder, and $6 million, per @wojespn pic.twitter.com/9kuxW0ofaB
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 29, 2022
The New York Knicks are trading centre Nerlens Noel and guard Alec Burks to the Detroit Pistons in order to clear cap space to sign Jalen Brunson, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reports. https://t.co/42MwQZqBEt
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) June 29, 2022