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Just when you think the Knicks are going to be quiet for a bit and enjoy a little summer vacation, in comes a Knicks PR bomb:
Knicks waive forward Troy Williams
— NY_KnicksPR (@NY_KnicksPR) July 16, 2018
An interesting choice, given that Williams just got a healthy dose of minutes for the Knicks’ summer league team, and was one of only three Knicks players to play in all five games in Vegas (the others being Damyean Dotson and Mitchell Robinson).
The move does succeed in bringing the Knicks down to the requisite 15 players on the NBA roster, albeit probably a little earlier than expected. One might have thought that the Knicks would have at least carried Williams to training camp and let him try out for David Fizdale’s squad, especially given the pre-existing connection between the two.
The Knicks’ move to get rid of Williams now rather than later may have been motivated by financials, however:
Troy Williams' salary wasn’t fully guaranteed. A portion ($100,000) would have been guaranteed on Aug. 1. Another portion ($100,000) would have been guaranteed if Williams made the Opening Night roster. The majority would have been guaranteed in early January. https://t.co/wni7il8daB
— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) July 16, 2018
It’s easy to think of $100,000 in the NBA as roughly the equivalent of $10 to a normal person, but that little extra bit of guaranteed money may have motivated the Knicks to make the move now. That, or the Knicks may have already just decided they didn’t want Williams for next season, so they decided to give him as much time as possible to find a new home.
It should also be noted that the Knicks still have roughly $3 million to spend on a free agent, should they choose, via the bi-annual exception.
So, fare thee well, Troy Williams. We hardly knew ye. I, for one, will remember you for your vicious dunks and fancy layups off of baseline cuts.