Bobby Marks breakdowns Karl-Anthony Towns' contract and Knicks' salary cap this offseason

[00:00:00]That's going to be good. Uh, this was very good. The Knicks had every reason to party in the streets of New York City today with their biggest supporters.

[00:00:06]Lots of great videos on social media.

[00:00:09]Uh, Cat dancing with uh, Mayor Mandani, Jaylen Brunson hanging with Marishka Haratee and Ben Stiller on a float.

[00:00:18]Here's much more of the best of today's Knicks Championship Parade.

[00:00:23]>> Your 2026 NBA champion, New York Knicks.

[00:00:28]for the love. I for >> a lot of people have a lot of opinions, but when you prove them wrong, you don't have to say to them.

[00:00:40]>> Let's go one time. Who let the dogs out?

[00:00:45]Who let the dogs out?

[00:00:48]I love you, New York. The Knicks do what New Yorkers have always done. When we are told something is impossible, we find a way. We win.

[00:01:00]>> To the greatest fans in the world, we did it for you in every arena. It felt like a home game wherever we played.

[00:01:09]>> This is our time. This is our time. We are champions.

[00:01:15]>> One last time, New York. Say it with me.

[00:01:17]Nixon.

[00:01:19]Nixon.

[00:01:21]Nixon.

[00:01:23]Knicks in.

[00:01:28]>> Now, let's talk a little business.

[00:01:30]Looking ahead, the Knicks starting five is under contract for next season, but key bench pieces Mitchell Robinson, Landry Shamut, their free agents. The Knicks are projected to be about $13 million below the second apron. And James Dolan doesn't want to go there and, you know, incur a whole lot of expensive penalties.

[00:01:48]>> Well, NBA front office, >> if we could bring back the whole team, right? exactly a as it is. I think we, you know, why wouldn't you, right? But I don't know if we're going to be able to, you know, we're willing to to stretch, right? But there's certain things in the NBA that you have to be, you know, suicidal to do, and we're not going to do those. The um one of them is called the second apron. Cannot go >> cannot go into the second apron. I'll write as big of a check as possible, but I I can't write a check that goes into the second apron.

[00:02:18]>> Got it.

[00:02:20]We can't go into the second apron. Just cannot.

[00:02:22]>> No. No.

[00:02:23]>> NBA front office insider Bobby Marks joining us now. Hey, don't worried about hitting that second apron. But it's not impossible for the Knicks to keep their supporting roster intact. Explain that to me.

[00:02:35]>> No, it is. And you know, the second apron really restricts teams from adding from the outside, whether in a trade or in free agency. with New York. When you have three of your own free agents with Mitchell Robinson, Landry Sham, and Jos Alvarado, who has a player option, you have the ability to retain those three players. And yes, you will exceed the second apron by doing so. And I think we learned from the Boston Celtics this past year, you can get into the second apron, and there's also ways for you to get out of the second apron here.

[00:03:04]Certainly, it would come with some cost cutting moves, and I think that would be an issue for next off season, not right now. But I do think it's a priority for those three players to come back here.

[00:03:13]>> Yeah, all those guys did play a pivotal role in that championship run. Um big roles. Uh Bobby, what else should Knicks fans be paying, no pun intended, attention to this off season?

[00:03:25]>> Well, speaking of paying, we're going to probably have an eye on Carl Anthony Towns. He is extension eligible. Jay, how about this number? Four years, $272 million. That is what Towns is extension eligible for. He's got two years left.

[00:03:40]He's got a player option for that second year. They can negotiate right now and he can sign that on on July 6th. That's the number to certainly keep an eye.

[00:03:48]Remember Jaylen Brunson had given back some money. Uh Muel Bridges. Will there be a compromise with Towns? Josh Hart is also extension eligible. Also Duke Deuce McBride. But Towns is going to be the player to focus on when we're looking at that next big contract here.

[00:04:02]>> Carl Anthony Towns two triple doubles in the playoffs tying Walt Frasier for the most in Knicks postseason history. Bobby Marks. my guy breaking it down. Thank you, sir.

[00:04:11]>> Well, the celebrations continue for the Knicks, but so does the work to defend their title. According to DraftKings Sportsbook, the Knicks are plus 250 to win the Eastern Conference title next season and plus 650 to win the NBA Finals. That's the fourth shortest odds of any team. And our betting analyst, Aaron Dolan, here with some thoughts.

[00:04:30]Aaron, what do you make of the Knicks odds to win?

[00:04:35]Well, to be blunt, I wouldn't go and bet the New York Knicks to win it next season. It's a little surprising to me that these are currently the longest odds for the last 15 years for a team that just won the NBA championship. But with betting, everything comes down to numbers. And heading into last season, in which they had just won the NBA championship, they were 10 to1. So, these odds are going to change throughout the season. And yes, like we had just talked about, or I should say you guys just talked about, they are going to have the remaining s I should say they should have the same starting five intact. And while that could end up helping them, so many things have to go right for the New York W Nick Knicks to win this again, I mean, we don't see repeat champions in the NBA quite often.

[00:05:13]So, for me right now, I would pass on this at plus 650.

[00:05:16]>> Perhaps a dagger to some New York fans hearts. But while we do have that New York demographic tuned in, give us a Giants or Jets future in the 2026 NFL season we should look forward to.

[00:05:29]So, there's some really fun markets right now that are available on DraftKings that are a little bit different than, let's say, a win total, which we're typically talking about.

[00:05:36]But, I'm going to be looking at the New York Giants first five games and then winning two of those games. So, you can get that at plus 200 right now on DK.

[00:05:44]But, while the Giants laid four wins last season, I do think that they should start off a little bit stronger. Their schedule isn't difficult. Three of their first four games are going to be played at home. of their first five opponents, only the Rams having a winning record last season. So, it shouldn't be too difficult for them to get two wins. It could be of any of these games right now on the board. I don't see them getting three wins to start the season. I'm not trying to crush New York completely, but I do think if you're looking at this list right now, the Giants have enough to win at least two games in the first five. So, again, this is just one of those fun markets and futures that are available on DraftKings.

[00:06:17]>> It's a young and fun Giants team. You never know. They do have a new head coach, but they are they're total set.

[00:06:23]>> Just what stood out to you when you think about this run?

[00:06:25]>> Well, there's so many things, but I I think also how did you succeed in life in any in any spot you're in, in any job you're in? You have people around you that you believe in and that believe in you. And you saw two men up on the stage. There's William Wesley. We all know him as Worldwide West. There's Leon Rose. Those guys met 40, 50 years ago in a shoe store in Cherry Hill, New Jersey.

[00:06:48]Wes sold a young Leon Rose, a pair of Dr. J's. That was how they met. They've been together for years, doing business together for years as agents at CIA, and now is in the Knicks front office. They went and found Jaylen Brunson, who Leon Rose was Jaylen Brunson's dad's first agent. Okay, he was his first client.

[00:07:08]They've been together for decades. Then they went and got his college teammates.

[00:07:11]They they you could not have surrounded Jaylen Brunson with more people who made him feel comfortable and who believed in him and who lifted him up. And I I think that's when you look back on this Knicks championship, you think it's a lesson in organizational success. It's a lesson in organizational behavior. How in any job, how do you succeed? You have people who believe in you and people who make you your best.

[00:07:32]>> Bobby, let's bring you in here. So, there's going to be an inevitable conversation about trying to repeat. We haven't had one in eight years. So, there are no guarantees even though they were on that stage. Um, no one actually said, "Hey, we're going back. We're going to win it again next year." How well are the Knicks set up to maybe run it back next year and try to win a championship?

[00:07:53]>> Well, certainly the starting five is is under contract and I think we we heard from James Dolan on uh the day before the parade talk about the the second apron here. And listen, the priority for New York when we get into the off we're in the offseason already is to retain your own your own free agents. So when you look at Landry Shamad and Mitchell Robinson and Jos Alvarado, uh there is a priority there. That's the that's as much as we talk about Jaylen Brunson and Carl Anthony Towns, the the strength of this team right now during the playoffs was part of this bench here. So that's that's the priority for New York. And for them to repeat, they're going to have to go out and and bring that that those reserves back.

[00:08:34]>> All right, real quick. And we have that sound that you referenced there, but Ramona, what do you think the biggest challenge will be for the Knicks?

[00:08:39]>> I mean, look, it's it's obviously bringing everyone back and I Carl Anthony Towns is due for a contract extension this summer. Um, he actually he could have gotten it during this year as well. It's a lot of money. I think that tacks on more to their to their books in the future as well. So, you have to think about can you keep this team together? But, it's really just all the outside noise. It's it's everybody saying, you know, look at we just look at that graphic. They're not even the favorites next year. It's this idea that you can still get better. Is this group that the group that you keep together? I think I think they've proven it and yet you have to just keep proving it. And James Olen said, "I want to bring everyone back. There's going to be some financial pressures. You can make some changes margin, but I I think the town's extension is probably the biggest thing they're going to have to answer is how much they're going to give him." Brunson obviously took less and that's what helped allow this team. Does that put pressure on Towns? All those decisions are and discussions are are waiting for the Knicks once they get past this glow.

[00:09:31]>> All right, listen. James Dolan, we referenced that. He was on the Carton show yesterday on WFA and radio in New York. And he threw a slight curveball, I guess, into the Knicks off season.

[00:09:42]>> We're willing to to stretch, right? But there's certain things in the NBA that you have to be, you know, suicidal to do, and we're not going to do those. The um one of them was called the second apron.

[00:09:55]cannot go cannot go into the second apron. That's up to Leon, right? I I just >> He's making all the decisions. You're just stroking checks, right?

[00:10:03]>> Yeah. I'm I you know, I'm just telling him how big of a check I can write, right? I'll write as big of a check as possible, but I I can't write a check that goes into the second a.

[00:10:13]>> Got it.

[00:10:13]>> All right, Bobby. Is James Dolan right to avoid the second a cost as he pointed out?

[00:10:20]Can I give him partial credit for his answer here, George? When he talks about the second Listen, this the second I think there's a lot of misinformation about the second apron. The second apron is for teams that do not have ch you're not you don't want to be in there if you're not a championship level roster because it restricts you from adding from the outside, from going out and making a trade and taking back more money and and signing free agents. But it doesn't restrict you to retain your own free agents. And certainly we've talked about the three that are a priority for them. And listen, they don't want to retain them and they want to, you know, avoid the second apron, then they're going to play the veteran minimum market there with their bench here. So, I would say yes, he's partially right, but when you have a championship level team like New York does, you do everything you do to go out and and try to compete here.

[00:11:06]>> Ramona, you mentioned, you know, some of the potential hurdles or obstacles that could be in the way of keeping the team keeping the team together, but now I'm going to ask you your opinion. Should they keep the group together?

[00:11:17]>> I think you have to run it back. I mean, this this group was so tight and the the closeness of this group was so important. I remember talking to people at the, you know, just as the finals were wrapping up and thinking, you know, the end of the summer last year, they had a chance to trade for Giannis to DKMPO. I think they'll still have that chance, right? These discussions are going to happen again. Do you revisit that? And and I I thought how different things would be if they would have somehow found a way to get that trade.

[00:11:44]Do they win this year with without this group with with Giannis there and having to integrate him?

[00:11:49]>> I mean, probably.

[00:11:51]>> I think so.

[00:11:52]>> If Giannis is healthy. Yeah, >> maybe. Probably. But all of that that's the biggest question, right? Is just do you do you take that next step or do you let just run it back? You won the first title in 53 years. Deserve a chance.

[00:12:03]>> Now, ways they can add to this draft in a cost-effective way or excuse me, add to this team in a cost-effective way is the draft. So,