Mohamed Diawara is expected to sign a multiyear deal worth more than $10 million in NBA free agency after one season with the New York Knicks. The move keeps a 2025 second-round pick in New York’s plans and gives the club another offseason contract choice to sort out.
Diawara’s 69-game season
The 2025 51st overall pick appeared in 69 regular-season games for New York, then added six playoff games. He averaged 3.6 points, 1.4 rebounds and 9.2 minutes in the regular season, and 1.2 points per game in the postseason.
That workload is the backdrop for the new deal. A player who held a steady roster spot for most of the season did enough to move from draft value to a multiyear contract, and the price point now climbs above $10 million.
Ian Begley on interest
Ian Begley said Diawara was "was certainly going to get significant interest from other teams" even though the player plans to stay with the Knicks. Begley also said Diawara felt "felt welcomed" when he arrived.
That gives New York a cleaner path than a one-year bridge deal would have. Instead of pushing the decision into another short-term cycle, the Knicks can lock in a young player who has already handled regular-season and postseason minutes.
Knicks offseason choices
The front office still has more work in front of it. Jose Alvarado had a $4.5 million player option with an initial deadline of Tuesday, then agreed to move that deadline to after the draft.
John Hollinger said Alvarado could make up to $10 million per year if he hits free agency. Karl-Anthony Towns is under contract next season, but he is eligible for a four-year, $272 million contract and holds a player option in 2027-28.
For now, Diawara’s next step is the most immediate one for the roster sheet: a multiyear deal above $10 million that turns a second-round pick into a real offseason commitment. The contract terms still matter because they will shape how much room remains for the rest of the Knicks’ decisions.
