Knicks Rule Out Cameron Payne Return for 2025-26 Season
knicks-wont-bring-back-cameron-payne
The New York Knicks have decided not to re-sign free-agent guard Cameron Payne, according to a league source cited by The New York Post. With one roster slot still open, the club will instead stage a three-player competition in training camp to fill the vacancy.
Payne, 31, joined New York last offseason on a one-year minimum deal. He logged 72 regular-season appearances, including five starts, and averaged 6.9 points, 1.4 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 15.1 minutes while shooting 40.1 percent from the field, 36.3 percent from three and 90.7 percent at the free-throw line.
The veteran guard delivered 14 points off the bench and finished plus-23 in Game 1 of the Knicks’ first-round series against Detroit, but his accuracy dipped as the postseason progressed, leading to his removal from the rotation during the Eastern Conference Finals.
New York remains just below the second tax apron and can add only one more veteran at the minimum salary. Malcolm Brogdon, Landry Shamet and Garrison Mathews have each accepted non-guaranteed contracts and will contend for that final spot.
Payne now has only a few weeks to land elsewhere before camps open, and no other team has been reported as a serious suitor this summer. The former No. 14 pick in the 2015 draft has previously played for Oklahoma City, Chicago, Cleveland, Phoenix, Milwaukee and Philadelphia.
Source: Hoops Rumors
