2 hours ago 1

Cavs conference rival adds some much needed depth

The Cleveland Cavaliers and the New York Knicks are expected to be the two top teams in the Eastern Conference this upcoming season. Cleveland is the better one on paper, and certainly was during this past regular season as they went 4-0 against New York, but they haven’t come close to having the same playoff success as the Knicks. It will be tough to pick the Cavs in a potential playoff series against the Knicks until Cleveland shows that their brand of basketball can translate to the postseason.

The Knicks don’t have the same depth that the Cavs do. They sacrificed that for star power last summer when they traded for Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns. This leaves a second unit that features Jordan Clarkson and Miles McBride as its only viable backcourt options. That’s why signing Malcolm Brogdon to a non-guaranteed deal can’t hurt anything.

Brogdon isn’t the player he was in 2023 when he won Sixth Man of the Year with the Boston Celtics. He’s played just 63 games combined the last two seasons with the Portland Trail Blazers and Washington Wizards.

Last season was his worst from an efficiency perspective as he registered an effective field goal percentage of 46.7%. This is due to his three-point shot falling off as he hit just 28.6% of them last season. He ended last season averaging 12.7 points, 4.1 assists, and 3.8 rebounds on .433/.286/.880 shooting in just 24 appearances.

A change of scenery might help. It’s difficult to go from a championship contending team like the Celtics to rudderless, tanking teams the following two seasons. Or, this could just be the result of not being the player he previously was, which is natural for a guard entering their age 33 season.

There’s a reason Brogdon’s deal is unguaranteed. He will need to beat out Landry Shamet for a roster spot in training camp and preseason. The Knicks are only expected to keep one on the opening night roster.

We’ll see if this is a consequential move. The odds are that it won’t be. But at the least, it shows that the Knicks know this is a weakness on the roster. It’ll be interesting to see if they try to make a trade after training camp or around the deadline to bolster the backcourt if things don’t work out with both Brogdon and Shamet.