6 Free-Agent Targets Knicks Should Already Have Circled

With the Knicks still very much in the thick of the playoffs, it feels somewhat odd looking ahead to the offseason. They have eight more games to win before achieving their ultimate goal, and are still in the midst of preparing for a conference finals opponent who should put up more of a fight than the 76ers did.

But when they sweep their opponent and give you a week without basketball, you get the privilege of kicking your feet up and looking a bit ahead. So, while there's still a lot of games left to be played in the 2025-26 season, which free agents should the Knicks be targeting this summer?

Tim Hardaway Jr.

If you're a Knicks fan, chances are you know everything Hardaway Jr. can and can't do. What's impressive, though, is Hardaway had arguably his best season at 33 years old this past campaign.

He shot a career-high 40.7% from three, had a career-best 59.1% effective field goal percentage, and did so on a winning team in Denver. Those marks earned him third place in Sixth Man of the Year voting.

While his 2018-19 showing (18.1 PPG across 46 games as a Knick and 19 as a Maverick) is still his top-end peak, this demonstrated a Hardway who can maximize his impact and help win games while primarily coming off of the bench.

The Nuggets could very well make sure to bring him back. The Knicks will also likely attempt to retain possibly both of Landry Shamet and Jordan Clarkson, who are soon-to-be unrestricted free agents.

If neither end up happening, Hardaway Jr. coming back for his third stint in New York could make some sense. He won't offer the kind of defense that Shamet provides, nor will he pressure full court or crash the offensive boards like Clarkson has. But he could provide the Knicks with a lot of shooting and a scoring upgrade from their current sixth-man wings.

Josh Okogie

Okogie started his career as a non-shooting, defensive-minded wing. While some of his defensive metrics have taken a step back, he's still very solid on that end of the floor, especially for a reserve. But the Knicks, who already roster Josh Hart, aren't necessarily dying to take on a wing that is a complete liability from outside the arc.

Thankfully, Okogie has made some strides in that department. After shooting under 30% from three in each of his first four seasons in the league, the 6'4" wing has slowly but surely improved his stroke. In 2025, he shot 34.8% from three. This past season, he logged 38.5% from three on 2.1 attempts per game.

He'll likely never be a knockdown shooter on a high volume. And he doesn't offer much offense besides his occasional spot-up shooting. But he could be an interesting add for a Knicks team that could very well end up on the market for a cheaper wing.

Keon Ellis

This one is a long shot. Keon Ellis has been a mainstay on a lot of people's under-the-radar analytic darlings. But for some reason, he's never fully broken through in the way that a similarly hyped up Deuce McBride did.

He defends very well, can make connective plays, and was a 43% three-point shooter in his first three seasons in the league. A 6'4" undersized shooting guard that can defend, and shoot threes for a cheap contract? Sounds like the perfect Shamet replacement.

The one big hurdle though? Mike Brown. Ellis played under the Knicks' current head coach during his time in Sacramento. Ellis wasn't out of the rotation, but he often played significantly less minutes than many believed he deserved.

During the 2024-25 campaign, Ellis averaged 19.9 MPG in the 29 games before Brown was fired. After the firing, Ellis averaged 26.9 MPG.

The 26 year-old guard makes a lot of sense, but as long as Brown is here, it's hard to see him utilizing the guard sufficiently. That being said, the Knicks should still keep a monitor his situation in case their coach changes his mind. His willingness to adapt has been a key part of this long postseason run, so there's hope he could patch things up here.

Andre Drummond

It's admittedly hard to sell Knicks fans on Andre Drummond after seeing him get played out of the rotation. But Drummond will not be tasked with guarding Karl-Anthony Towns, or trying to switch on to Jalen Brunson, if he signs in New York.

Obviously the priority will be to bring Robinson back. Though if he doesn't return, then replacing him with one of the other greatest offensive rebounders of this generation (third in the league in offensive rebounds per 36 mins) could be a nice fallback option.

His defense, while not as game-changing as Robinson's, isn't always as bad as it looked last series. And his still-elite presence on the boards would give the Knicks a center that has a really strong NBA-level skill -- something Ariel Hukporti still seems to be lacking at the moment.

Another interesting wrinkle that Drummond adds, that many other bigs don't, is his ability to make threes. He isn't a shooter per se, but he did showcase in Year 14 that he is capable of being a league-average player from downtown with 35.6% from three on 1.4 attempts per game.

It won't wow you, and you definitely don't want him taking many, but it could be another weapon that gives New York's bench rotation a new dimension to play around with.

Jock Landale

When the Knicks faced off against the Hawks in the first-round of this year's playoffs, many Hawks fans pointed at Landale's absence as a series-changer. I have a hard time believing that a 6'11" backup center would flip what ended up being a mostly one-sided six-game series.

That being said, I do buy that Landale is a solid player, and would gladly invest some Landale stock given the career year he is coming off of.

In 68 games this season, Landale averaged a 10.6 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 1.7 APG, 0.5 SPG, and 0.5 BPG in 22.1 MPG, which are all career-highs. He also shot 51.5% from the field, while posting 38.3% from three on 2.8 attempts per game.

Landale might not be the game-changing big man that Robinson is. But truthfully, there may not be a single backup big in the league capable of altering a game the way Robinson can. Landale would give them a different look off the bench, and while the Hawks would likely prefer to bring him back, he is another name the Knicks should keep a close eye on.

Jaxson Hayes

Jaxson Hayes may not have the three-point potential of Landale, or the offensive rebounding prowess of Drummond, but with the limited salary flexibility the Knicks have, they'll be hard-pressed to find a high level game changer at a price point they are able to offer.

Hayes, of all the other potential options, may give them the highest floor. He is an athletic vertical threat who can move laterally reasonably well for his size and position. He isn't great at any one thing in particular, but could be looked at someone that could give Hukporti more internal competition for immediate playing time.

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