The New York Knicks continued reshaping their bench unit, which was dead last in minutes and scoring production.
On Tuesday, July, the Knicks signed free agent French forward Guerschon Yabusele to a two-year, $12 million deal, ESPN’s senior NBA insider Shams Charania reports.
The 6-foot-8 forward was one of the few bright spots in Philadelphia last season in his NBA comeback after starring in France’s silver medal run in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Yabusele averaged 11.1 points on 50.1% field goal shooting and 38% from the 3-point line, 5.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists for the injury-hit 76ers last season. The 260-pound power forward gives the Knicks a wide-bodied enforcer on their bench.
French Star Boosts Knicks Bench
The Knicks deal represents a massive raise for Yabusele, who only signed for a one-year, $2.1 million deal with the 76ers last season following his breakout performance in the Olympics.
Yabusele averaged 14.0 points for France, dropping 22 points against Canada, 17 against Germany and 20 against Team USA in the medal rounds.
The Knicks bench only averaged 12.7 minutes and 21.7 points last season, which both ranked last in the regular season. It was one of the factors the Knicks fired Tom Thibodeau despite guiding the Knicks to their most successful season with their first Eastern Conference Final appearance in the last 25 years.
Now they have added Yabusele and will sign former Sixth Man of the Year Jordan Clarkson for the veteran minimum deal, per Stefan Bondy of New York Post, once he clears the waivers.
Yabusele and Clarkson will join Miles McBride and Mitchell Robinson in the Knicks second unit.
The Knicks used their taxpayer midlevel exception to sign Yabusele. They will need to sign a player to a rookie minimum salary to stay under the second apron, like Mohamed Diawara or James Nnaji, according to salary cap expert Yossi Gazlan, to round out their roster.
Knicks Expressed Interest in Suns Center
Before the Yabusele signing, the Knicks expressed interest in trading for Phoenix Suns center Nick Richards, Hoopshype’s Michael Scotto reported.
Richards entered last week’s NBA Draft as the lone center on the Suns roster. But the acquisitions of his former Charlotte Hornets teammate Mark Williams and the selection of Duke standout Khaman Maluach with the No. 10 pick cloud his future in Phoenix.
“Richards has drawn trade interest from several teams, including the New York Knicks, Indiana Pacers, and Los Angeles Lakers, league sources told HoopsHype,” Scotto wrote.
The 7-foot Richards, 27, has a $5 million non-guaranteed salary for the 2025-26 season. But Scotto added that the Suns are expected to guarantee his salary, which will give the team the ability to trade him.
The Knicks previously held interest in Richards last offseason when they were looking for a center as place holder while Robinson was recovering from a left ankle surgery.
Richards, who has a 7-foot-4 wingspan, averaged nearly a double-double per game last season. He posted 9.3 points on 59.1% shooting, 8.2 rebounds, and 1.0 blocks in 22 minutes per game while splitting time with the Hornets and the Suns last season. The former Kentucky Wildcat started in 43 of 57 games.
