Jericho Sims Inks Three-Year Deal

Knicks rising sophomore big man Jericho Sims has a new deal with the club ahead of Summer League in Las Vegas starting tomorrow.

The New York Knicks and rising second-year big man Jericho Sims have agreed to a new NBA contract that will last three years, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania. The new contract is worth “short of $6 million,” per The Athletic’s Fred Katz.

Sims, 23, was the 58th overall pick of the 2021 NBA Draft out of Texas by the Knicks, initially agreeing to a two-way contract presented by the New York ball club last year. During the 2021–22 season, Sims appeared in 41 games (plus three G League games), averaging 2.2 points and 4.1 rebounds in 13.5 minutes per game, shooting 72.2% from the floor at the big-league level. Sims started at center in the final three games for the Knicks, posting 7.3 points, 12.0 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks per game averages in his first real shot.

The reshuffling of Sims’ contract with the Knicks leaves an open two-way contract, which they will use for 2022 second-round selection (no. 42 overall) Trevor Keels out of Duke, according to Katz (Feron Hunt occupies the other two-way contract). The ‘Bockers selected the 18-year-old former Blue Devil as the only pick they went home with following a pair of trades that sent the 11th overall pick, Ousmane Dieng, to the Oklahoma City Thunder and the 13th pick, Jalen Duren, to the Detroit Pistons along with Kemba Walker.

Keels and Sims will participate in New York’s Las Vegas Summer League exhibition team, coached by assistant Daisuke “Dice” Yoshimoto, commencing tomorrow, July 8th. Also participating are rising sophomores Quentin Grimes and Miles “Deuce” McBride and undrafted free agent signing Jean Montero.

With Sims still on the roster, the Knicks have a glut of big men/centers. The depth, starting with Mitchell Robinson, who re-signed at four years and $60 million, was bolstered by the addition of former Los Angeles Clippers center Isaiah Hartenstein (two years, $17 million). The Knicks also possess 37-year-old Tom Thibodeau mainstay Taj Gibson, who’s on a non-guaranteed deal next season, and, at power forward, they have one-time All-Star Julius Randle and former lottery selection Obi Toppin.

The Knicks officially announced the Walker trade yesterday after the NBA’s moratorium lifted at noon, but no Jalen Brunson signing has been announced by the club. There remains speculation that the Dallas Mavericks losing their point guard could be finagled into a sign-and-trade.