Landry Shamet's Preseason Play Is a Bigger Knicks Deal Than Most Realize

On Sept. 14, 2024, Landry Shamet signed an Exhibit 9 contract giving him a shot at winning one of the Knicks' last roster spots. If you told the Knicks that he'd end up becoming not just a solid player, but a pivotal part of a rotation that would end up winning a championship, even they would have a hard time believing it. But 25 months later, that's the case.

Still, there was a case to be made that questions followed him this preseason after a four-year, $24 million extension. Can he stay healthy after battling injuries in his lone two seasons as a Knick? Were his defensive improvements from last season a fluke or is it real? How about his shooting? Shamet has actually only managed to shoot above 38% four times.

So far, Shamet has answered all of the aforementioned questions and more. He's scored 23 total points in a combined 27 minutes while shooting 8-15 from the field and 5-9 from three. As Ian Begley of SNY recently noted, it's truly amazing to see someone who was fighting for a roster spot the past two preseasons come in and stand out as one of the more impressive players on the team this fall.

back to back threes from NBA Champion Landry Shamet 🤩 pic.twitter.com/KumSoFNwEu
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) October 5, 2026

Shamet's success story is not just a feel-good story, though. There are some real implications if he has leveled up his game.

Landry Shamet's breakout could have roster, rotation impacts for the Knicks

While fans have long wondered what a starting lineup with Shamet instead of Josh Hart would look like, that likely won't happen. The lineup of Shamet alongside Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby, and Karl-Anthony Towns posted a -3.7 net rating in 114 minutes last season. And while Brown has been more willing to sit Hart than Tom Thibodeau ever was, he still thinks very highly of Hart and has stuck with him.

But what could this mean for the Knicks' true sixth man role and more specifically, Miles McBride? No team needs to designate a single player as the de facto sixth man, but most of the good teams have that one guy that is starter quality and can often finish games.

New York has had the luxury of having the combination of McBride and Shamet fill that role lately. McBride's shot, which has been off throughout two preseason games, should be fine over time. He's been a good outside shooter for a couple of years now. But he is coming off a Finals series in which he looked outmatched offensively. Some of that can and should be credited to the sports hernia injury that he revealed still hampered him against the Spurs.

Yet if McBride continues to struggle, could Shamet separate himself as the true sixth man? It definitely wouldn't mean that McBride would be pushed out of the rotation. And he'd likely only see a few less minutes. But if Shamet and McBride do continue to play the way they have, there's an argument to be made that Shamet should play more than the 23.0 mpg he averaged last season. McBride is still the superior defender, but Shamet battles defensively and does have a slight size advantage.

There's also the potential trade aspect of it all as well. I, like many, have been vocal about how McBride is too valuable to trade. It would be crushing to see the Knicks lose such a valuable player for nothing. Trading away an elite defensive back up who has shot it extremely well from three the last couple seasons would still be foolish if your main goal is to win another championship.

That being said, if the Knicks were to part ways with McBride in favor of getting something before he possibly walks away for nothing, Shamet taking another step and building off of a strong preseason could make them feel a bit better about it.

Two preseason games shouldn't be enough to make such rash decisions. It's a rather small sample size. McBride's shot will surely come back. And Shamet's will sure cool off.

But for a player who has dealt with so much uncertainty throughout his career, and for a team that's looking to become the first team to repeat as champions since 2018, Shamet's hot start is more notable than most preseason affairs.

Get Knicks On SI straight to your inbox: sign up for our free newsletter here.

Add us as a preferred source on Google