The NBA has opened an investigation into the Knicks for potentially tampering ahead of their signing of guard Jalen Brunson in free agency, per Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.
The Knicks signed Brunson, previously of the Mavericks, to a four-year, $104 million deal last month. Per Haynes, the NBA is trying to determine if the Knicks recruited Brunson prior to the start of the free agency period.
Prior to free agency a report stated that Brunson arranged meetings with the Knicks, Mavs and Heat, though the Heat later denied that any such arrangements had been made. Other reports suggested that Brunson-to-the-Knicks was a done deal.
The Knicks also hired Brunson’s father, Rick Brunson, ahead of free agency. While there’s nothing in the NBA rulebook prohibiting such a move, it likely did raise some eyebrows on how deeply the Knicks were involved with Jalen Brunson.
Along with that, Knicks president Leon Rose is a former CAA agent and his son, Sam Rose, is among those who represent Brunson today — all of which will certainly further complicate the Knicks’ case and Brunson’s case.
“The Knicks created salary-cap space to offer Brunson that deal when they traded center Nerlens Noel and guard Alec Burks to the Detroit Pistons, clearing $19 million in salary,” Haynes wrote. “The Knicks also sent 2023 and 2024 second-round draft picks and $6 million in cash to the Pistons.”
Brunson, 25, is 6-foot-1 and just finished his fourth year with the Mavs, averaging career highs of 16.3 points, 4.8 assists and 3.9 rebounds.
He never took a meeting with the Mavs and Heat, indicating that both teams assumed they would be wasting their time — and that Brunson had already determined he would be signing with the Knicks.
If found guilty, the Knicks could be fined and face penalties that include losing first-round draft picks.
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