Mohamed Diawara is expected to stay with the New York Knicks on a multiyear deal worth more than $10 million, a move that keeps the 2025 second-round pick in New York after one season with the team. The contract is not yet described as formally completed, but the direction is clear enough to matter now: the Knicks are moving to lock in a young piece they drafted 51st overall.
Diawara did enough in limited minutes to give the Knicks a reason to act. He appeared in 69 regular-season games and averaged 3.6 points, 1.4 rebounds and 9.2 minutes per game, then played in six postseason games and averaged 1.2 points. For a player taken late in the draft, that kind of availability is part of the value, and it helps explain why New York is prepared to move quickly rather than let the market decide his price.
That timing matters because the Knicks now have another offseason choice on their hands, with Jose Alvarado’s $4.5 million player option having originally carried a Tuesday deadline before he agreed to push it to after the draft. The same broader stretch of roster work also includes Karl-Anthony Towns, who is eligible for a four-year, $272 million contract and already remains under contract next season with a player option in 2027-28. In other words, Diawara’s deal is not happening in isolation; it lands in the middle of a Knicks summer that is already starting to stack up decisions.
What makes Diawara’s situation more striking is how close he may have come to a wider market. Ian Begley of SNY said he was likely to draw significant interest from other teams had he reached restricted free agency, even though the Knicks now appear set to keep him. Begley also noted that Diawara felt welcomed in New York, a small phrase that carries more weight when a player is believed to have options elsewhere.
Diawara’s path to this point runs through France, where he played professionally for four years before reaching New York. That background helps explain why this is more than a routine depth move. The Knicks are betting on a player who has already shown he can get onto the floor, and they are doing it before other teams can turn curiosity into a bidding war. The remaining question is not whether New York wants him; it is whether the multiyear deal is already sealed or still just awaiting the final step.
