New York Knicks 2026-27 roster deep dive: the champions run it back, but Dolan draws a hard line at the second apron

The New York Knicks are NBA champions for the first time in 53 years, having beaten the San Antonio Spurs in five games in the 2026 NBA Finals. The offseason that followed carried one central question: how much of that roster could the front office keep together, and at what financial cost.

The core answer is simple. Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby, and Josh Hart are all still Knicks. Everything below that top five, however, got reshaped by a hard financial line that owner James Dolan drew in public.

Dolan’s second-apron stance reshapes the supporting cast

In mid-June 2026, with the confetti barely swept up, Dolan told WFAN radio that the Knicks would not cross the second apron to keep the championship roster fully intact. At the time, New York sat roughly $13 million below that threshold — about $18 million over the luxury tax, $9.4 million above the first apron, and just $3.3 million below the second apron itself. The 2026-27 second apron is projected at approximately $221.7 million, roughly $21 million above the luxury tax line.

The Athletic argued the Knicks should have been willing to pay that bill, calling the cost of not doing so « even more costly » given how rarely a genuine title window opens. Dolan drew the line anyway, and the roster turnover that followed is a direct consequence — the second apron doesn’t just mean a bigger tax bill, it also restricts trade tools and free-agent exceptions, which narrowed New York’s options in retention talks.

Mitchell Robinson, the defensive anchor of New York’s title run, left as an unrestricted free agent to sign with the Boston Celtics after eight seasons with the Knicks (2018-2026). Ariel Hukporti, a restricted free agent, signed a one-year, $3.4 million deal with the Philadelphia 76ers. Guerschon Yabusele and Tosan Evbuomwan also departed. Jeremy Sochan, a bench piece on the championship roster, signed a one-year deal with the Portland Trail Blazers — the Knicks publicly thanked him on the way out, just days before turning around and signing Andre Drummond to replace the center minutes.

The replacements: Drummond in, Alvarado and Diawara back

To rebuild center depth after losing both Robinson and Hukporti, New York signed Andre Drummond to a reported one-year, $3.9 million deal. It’s a modest bet at backup center, but on paper the only one on the roster behind Towns.

Elsewhere, the front office prioritized continuity where it could afford to. Jose Alvarado agreed to a new deal to stay as backup point guard. Landry Shamet was re-signed to a four-year, $24 million contract. And Mohamed Diawara, the young French power forward, signed a multi-year deal reportedly worth over $10 million in salary — a real vote of confidence from the organization rather than a minimum-level flier.

New York Knicks 2026-27 projected starting lineup

Point Guard — Jalen Brunson
The engine of the championship run, signed through a contract that famously left over $100 million on the table earlier in his career to help the front office build the roster around him. His salary for 2026-27 sits at $37,739,521 — team-friendly relative to his production, and part of why New York could afford Towns and Bridges at max-level money. He remains the offense’s primary shot-creator and closer, the player Mike Brown’s entire late-game structure is built around.

Shooting Guard — Mikal Bridges
Bridges carries the largest total guarantee on the roster, worth $108,482,144 across his extension. His two-way versatility lets him slide between guard spots, guarding both backcourt and wing assignments while spacing the floor as a low-maintenance secondary scorer who doesn’t need the ball to be effective.

Small Forward — OG Anunoby
At $42,500,000, Anunoby is the roster’s second-highest-paid player and its primary point-of-attack defender on the wing. He’s tasked nightly with the opposing team’s best perimeter scorer, while contributing floor-spacing and occasional slashing offense that rounds out the starting group’s two-way profile.

Power Forward — Josh Hart
Hart’s positional flexibility — rebounding, playmaking, and switchability — gives Mike Brown a hybrid forward who can guard multiple spots. He’s the connective tissue of the starting five: an elite offensive rebounder, a willing passer, and a defender capable of guarding up a position when matchups demand it.

Center — Karl-Anthony Towns
At $57,078,728, Towns is the roster’s highest-paid player and its offensive centerpiece. He’s eligible for a supermax extension in the range of four years and $260-272 million — roughly $68 million per year — with those talks looming over the franchise’s long-term cap planning. On the floor, he’s the roster’s premier shooting big man and its most reliable offensive foul-drawer, spacing the floor in ways that unlock driving lanes for Brunson.

New York Knicks 2026-27 bench rotation

Miles McBride (Point Guard) — Reliable backup ball-handler and the roster’s best perimeter defender off the bench, capable of guarding either guard spot while providing secondary shot creation when Brunson sits.

Jose Alvarado (Point Guard) — Re-signed to keep providing his trademark on-ball pressure in a reserve role, the kind of disruptive, high-motor defending that regularly forces turnovers against opposing backup guards.

Jordan Clarkson (Shooting Guard) — Instant offense off the bench, a scoring specialist role he’s held across multiple stops, brought in specifically to create his own shot when the starting unit rests.

Landry Shamet (Shooting Guard) — Re-signed on a four-year, $24 million deal specifically for his floor-spacing, a low-usage catch-and-shoot threat who stretches second-unit defenses.

Kevin McCullar Jr. (Shooting Guard) — Depth wing continuing his development, used in short stretches as a physical, switchable defender on the perimeter.

Dillon Jones (Small Forward) — Rotation depth at forward, offering size and rebounding when Mike Brown needs a bigger body on the wing.

Pacôme Dadiet (Forward) — The young Frenchman opened Summer League by scoring roughly a third of the Knicks’ total points in the team’s first game, a strong marker for a 21-year-old forward with size and shooting touch who profiles as a future wing rotation piece.

Mohamed Diawara (Power Forward) — Re-signed on a multi-year deal worth more than $10 million, a clear sign the front office views him as more than a depth piece. He offers frontcourt versatility and energy that could push him into real minutes if the center rotation gets stretched thin.

Andre Drummond (Center) — The only proven backup center on the roster, signed on a one-year, $3.9 million deal after Robinson and Hukporti both departed. His role is straightforward: rebound at a high rate and protect the rim enough to let Towns rest without the defense collapsing.

Trey Jemison III (Center) / Tyler Kolek (Point Guard) — Depth pieces rounding out the roster, both projected for deep-bench minutes barring injuries elsewhere.

New York Knicks 2026-27 roster breakdown

• Karl-Anthony Towns — C — $57,078,728 — Signed, supermax extension talks pending
• OG Anunoby — SF — $42,500,000 — Signed
• Jalen Brunson — PG — $37,739,521 — Signed, long-term
• Mikal Bridges — SG/SF — Part of $108.5M total extension — Signed, long-term
• Josh Hart — SF/PF — Veteran deal — Signed
• Landry Shamet — SG — Four-year, $24M — Re-signed 2026
• Andre Drummond — C — approx. $3.9M — One-year deal
• Jose Alvarado — PG — Veteran deal — Re-signed 2026
• Mohamed Diawara — PF — Multi-year, $10M+ — Re-signed 2026
• Miles McBride — PG — Veteran deal — Signed
• Jordan Clarkson — SG — Veteran deal — Signed
• Kevin McCullar Jr. — SG — Rookie-scale — Signed
• Dillon Jones — SF — Rookie-scale — Signed
• Pacôme Dadiet — F — Rookie-scale — Signed
• Trey Jemison III — C — Two-way/rookie — Signed
• Tyler Kolek — PG — Rookie-scale — Signed

Cap situation: over the tax, under the second apron — deliberately

The NBA salary cap for 2026-27 is set at $164,961,000. The Knicks are well into luxury-tax territory but are staying under the second apron by design, per Dolan’s own public commitment. That stance directly shaped the roster’s turnover: it’s the reason Robinson, Hukporti, Yabusele, Evbuomwan, and Sochan are elsewhere this season rather than back in New York.

The unresolved variable is Towns. A supermax extension worth up to $68 million per year would push the payroll into territory that makes staying under the second apron considerably harder in future seasons — meaning this summer’s discipline may only be a one-year reprieve.

The roster hole: center depth behind Towns

A year ago, New York carried Towns, Mitchell Robinson, and Ariel Hukporti at center — three genuine NBA rotation bigs. Now it’s Towns and Andre Drummond on a one-year, minimum-level deal. If Towns picks up foul trouble or misses any time, the Knicks have no proven replacement capable of protecting the rim at anywhere near Robinson’s level. It’s the single clearest downgrade from the roster that won the title in June.

Unanswerable questions

Does Towns sign the supermax? The numbers are enormous — up to $272 million over four years — and the timing collides directly with Dolan’s second-apron stance. Committing to that money could force even harder roster decisions a year from now.

Can Drummond hold the position by himself? One year, one contract, and effectively no depth chart behind him at center. It’s the most exposed spot on the roster.

Is Dolan’s line permanent? The commitment not to cross the second apron was firm in June 2026. Whether that holds if the title defense hits turbulence in-season is an open question — ownership stances on tax bills have shifted before when a roster is this close to another parade.

How much do Dadiet and Diawara take on? Both Frenchmen are 21 or younger, both are already earning real money and real minutes on a championship roster. Their growth curve could determine how much rotation stress the center and forward spots can absorb.

Mike Brown’s challenge

Brown returns to a team that just won it all but is thinner behind its starters than it was in June. Managing Towns’ minutes without a proven backup center, integrating Drummond into a system that demands defensive discipline, and giving Dadiet and Diawara real run without disrupting the rotation that just delivered a championship — that’s the balancing act ahead of him this season.

Season outlook

The ceiling here is a repeat. The starting five that won the title in June is entirely intact, and continuity of that magnitude is rare for any champion, let alone one built the way New York was. The floor depends almost entirely on center depth: if Towns stays healthy, this roster looks every bit as dangerous as the one that beat San Antonio. If he doesn’t, Drummond alone is a considerably smaller safety net than Robinson and Hukporti ever were. The talent to defend the title is there. The margin for absorbing an injury at center is not.

Frequently asked questions

Who left the Knicks in the 2026 offseason?

Mitchell Robinson signed with the Boston Celtics, Ariel Hukporti signed with the Philadelphia 76ers, Guerschon Yabusele and Tosan Evbuomwan also departed, and Jeremy Sochan signed a one-year deal with the Portland Trail Blazers.

Who replaced Mitchell Robinson at center?

Andre Drummond, signed to a reported one-year, $3.9 million deal, is the only proven backup center on the 2026-27 roster behind Karl-Anthony Towns.

Will the Knicks re-sign Karl-Anthony Towns to a supermax?

Towns is eligible for a four-year extension in the range of $260-272 million, but the decision remains pending and would directly affect New York’s ability to stay under the second apron in future seasons.