Knicks add Donte DiVincenzo in a four-year, $50 million deal

DiVincenzo, 26, is coming off a solid season with the Golden State Warriors, with whom he averaged 9.4 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 72 regular season games (36 starts) while shooting a career-high 39.7% of his career. 3 points. Ranging from 5.3 tries per game.

After the Knicks signed Bronson in free agency last summer, then sent a first-round pick to the Portland Trail Blazers for Hart at the February trade deadline, they’ve now added a third Villanova product in the space of a year by landing Divincenzo, one of the best players available in the free agent class. for this year.

DiVincenzo turned down a $4.7 million player option for next season earlier this week; The expectation was that he would get a huge raise from that number on the open market, and he eventually did with the Knicks.

He gives New York another solid defender and solid 3-point tackle on the perimeter, continuing to fit the mold of what the team has built under head coach Tom Thibodeau, joining a perimeter rotation that includes Hart, Bronson, RJ Barrett, Emmanuel Quickley, and Quentin Grimes.

Earlier Saturday, the Knicks sent forward Obi Tobin to the Indiana Pacers for a pair of future second-round draft picks in a move that opened up a rotational spot in New York and earned the paycheck to help contain Divincenzo under the $172.3 million cap. Give it an exception from the average level for non-taxpayers.

DiVincenzo was a first round pick by the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2018 NBA Draft and spent parts of four seasons with the Bucks, including starting 66 regular season games in Milwaukee’s championship-winning 2021 season before missing most of the playoffs due to an ankle injury.

He was given to the Sacramento Kings at the 2022 trade deadline before signing a one-year deal with a player option for a second with Golden State last summer.

The Knicks are hoping adding Divincenzo will allow them to build on the success of last season, when New York won a playoff series for the first time in a decade by defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers in five games. The Knicks eventually lost to the Miami Heat in six games in the next round.