Knicks Rumors: Lance Thomas Wants To Return
New York Knicks Rumors: Lance Thomas is drawing interest on the open market, but reportedly wants to return to the Knicks.
New York Knicks rumors have begun to pop up about how the team will fill out their roster. With a majority of their money spent to round out their starting lineup, the Knicks need to now focus on building their bench. Tim Frazier has emerged as a target in the backcourt, but the Knicks have to basically build their whole bench.
One way to do that would be retaining some of their players. The Knicks have multiple free agents, but it is fair to guess that Sasha Vujacic, Kevin Seraphin and Lou Amundson will not be returning. Langston Galloway received a qualifying offer from the Knicks, and he should return.
The Knicks also have a cap hold on Lance Thomas, but his return is murky. But, if it was up to Thomas himself, he would be returning to the Knicks next season.
Thomas has already drawn a lot of interest on the market, as the Minnesota Timberwolves, Brooklyn Nets, Los Angeles Clippers, Oklahoma City Thunder, San Antonio Spurs, Atlanta Hawks and New Orleans Pelicans have been linked to Thomas. He has already turned down an offer from the Clippers, so his interest in returning to the Knicks is legitimate.
“He still wants to stay,” the source said to Marc Berman of the New York Post. “He likes the moves they’ve done.” The source also added that chances are still better than 50-50 that Thomas returns to play with the Knicks next season.
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Because the Knicks have a cap hold for Thomas, they can go over the salary cap to retain him. That is part of the reason that they have yet to truly engage him in returning, as it is smart to use their cap space on other free agents first.
The Knicks also possess Thomas’ Early Bird Rights, meaning the most that they can offer him in the first year of a deal is $6 million. That would be a huge increase for Thomas, who has earned $4,028,71 in his career in total, as he re-signed with the Knicks last season for the veteran’s minimum of $1.65 million.
Even if the Knicks give Thomas the max they are allowed, it would be a steal in this market. Thomas has worked tirelessly on his game, earning himself a spot in the Knicks rotation last season. He worked hard on his game, improving to become a 40.4 percent three-point shooter.
That, along with his effort defensively gave the Knicks a solid contributor with their second unit. His versatility and energy was contagious, as he was a big reason why the Knicks had started the season out as well as they did when they were 22-22.
But, Thomas’ and the Knicks’ season went downhill after that, as he battled a number of knee injuries. That caused him to appear in only 59 games as he missed a majority of the second half of the season; Thomas played in the first 43 games consecutively, but appeared in only 16 the remainder of the season. That coincided with the Knicks fall in the standings as the losses began mounting.
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Seeing the list of teams that were interested in Thomas is an indication of how he is viewed throughout the league as four teams are contenders and two more are on the up-and-up. His ability to play multiple positions and fill numerous roles on the team makes him an important piece of the puzzle.
Thomas was an integral part of the success for the team last season, and is someone the Knicks should try their best to retain.