Second-round pick Tyler Nickel has stood out in the Las Vegas Summer League, prompting The Athletic’s James Edwards III to explore the possibility of the rookie earning the 14th spot on the Knicks roster rather than a two-way contract.
A 22-year-old perimeter ace from Vanderbilt, Nickel is averaging 17 points per game while knocking down 47.6 percent of his three-pointers through his first two outings in Vegas. He has also shown off his motor and sneaky defensive abilities, Edwards adds.
Nickel could be an insurance policy for Landry Shamet and Miles McBride, both of whom have battled injuries the past two seasons. The Knicks could then sign a young center to fill a two-way spot.
Here’s more on the New York teams:
Pacome Dadiet is reaching a crossroads in his Knicks career, Stefan Bondy of the New York Post writes. A 2024 late-first rounder, Dadiet has failed to carve out a rotation spot in his first two seasons. He has continued to struggle with his shooting in the first two Summer League games this month despite averaging 16.5 PPG. He has shot 36.0% overall and 15.4% from beyond the arc. The Knicks have until October 31 to decide whether to pick up their $5.3MM option on his 2027/28 contract and it would be impossible to justify doing that at this point, Bondy notes.
Nets rookie forward Joshua Jefferson is still scraping off rust after his college career at Iowa State was cut short due to a left ankle sprain. The No. 28 pick in the draft, Jefferson only made one shot, a layup, in eight attempts during his Summer League debut. “[Saturday] was just the first game in four months, since March when I got hurt. So it’s really been a long time since I’ve been in a playing setting because I wasn’t able to get any practice reps either,” Jefferson told Brian Lewis of the New York Post. “So, I definitely think I’m going to be fine. I showed some glimpses [of] what I can do with the ball in my hand, so just got to keep playing.”
On the flip side, Nets two-way player Chaney Johnson may be moving himself into the mix at power forward, according to C.J. Holmes of the New York Daily News. Johnson piled up 20 points, 10 rebounds and five steals against Atlanta on Saturday. “I feel like my main goal is just to be the hardest playing player out there,” said Johnson, who went undrafted last year.