The New York Knicks have signed James Wiseman, Drew Eubanks and Liam Robbins, and they still are looking at more center options. The push for another big man comes even after three additions to a position group that is still unsettled.
That search matters now because the Knicks have 19 players under contract for camp and can carry up to 21 if they choose, which leaves room for more movement before roster decisions harden. In other words, the team has already filled out the center room, but not enough to stop shopping for it.
Kevin Love is one of the names in that mix. He is 38 years old, won an NBA championship in 2016 and averaged 5.8 rebounds per game in 16.6 minutes a night this past season. Over the past five seasons, he has spent at least half of his time at center in three of them, which is why he fits the kind of veteran depth the Knicks are examining for the third-string job and vacant two-way spots.
Mason Plumlee fits the same lane for different reasons. He averaged 6.1 rebounds per game for the Phoenix Suns a season ago, has had stints with eight different teams over 13 years and is a seven-footer. The Knicks are weighing players with size, experience and enough flexibility to survive camp competition, especially with Karl-Anthony Towns and Andre Drummond among the names that may need to come out during games.
That is the wrinkle in the Knicks' plan. They have already signed three centers, yet the roster still points toward another addition, not a closed door. The move would not be about headlines as much as insurance: one more body for camp, one more body for the two-way conversation, and one more chance to see whether a veteran big man can beat out the rest of the field.
So the next step is not hard to see, even if the name is. The Knicks are still shopping, and the most likely addition is the one who can do the simplest job at the lowest cost: give them reliable size, hold up in camp, and make the center race harder to call before the season begins.
