The Pelicans have turned down multiple Knicks pitches for center Yves Missi, according to NBA insider Chris Haynes, who reports (via Twitter) that New York has “feverishly” been trying to acquire the big man from New Orleans.
However, Haynes says the Pelicans consider Missi part of their core and have conveyed that he’s not available. Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link) says he heard a similar message out of New Orleans around the time of draft, with the team indicating that it wants the third-year center to have a chance to play under new head coach Jamahl Mosley.
The Knicks are in the market for a center to back up Karl-Anthony Towns after losing Mitchell Robinson to Boston in free agency. Third-stringer Ariel Hukporti is also on his way out of town, having agreed to a free agent deal with Philadelphia.
New York is looking to avoid surpassing the second tax apron, so its options are limited. According to Yossi Gozlan of CapSheets.com, the club is currently operating about $8.7MM below the second apron with three roster spots left to fill. A veteran’s minimum contract is worth roughly $2.45MM, so the Knicks wouldn’t be able to offer a free agent much more than that.
The team could generate a little extra spending flexibility below the second apron by signing one or more second-round picks to standard contracts, since their rookie minimum salaries would only carry cap/apron hits of about $1.36MM. This year’s No. 47 overall pick Tyler Nickel may be a candidate for that sort of deal, but it sounds like the plan is for No. 39 pick Jack Kayil to continue playing in Germany in 2026/27, per Begley. Kayil isn’t on the Summer League roster that the team announced today (Twitter link).
Missi makes sense as a Knicks target due to his modest cap hit of $3.51MM. Acquiring him would require New York to send out either Miles McBride ($3.96MM) or both Pacome Dadiet ($2.98MM) and Tyler Kolek ($2.3MM) for salary-matching purposes. Trading just one of Dadiet or Kolek in a deal for Missi wouldn’t be permitted, since teams operating over the first tax apron can’t use the expanded traded player exception (ie. taking back more salary than they send out). The Knicks also have a variety of draft assets they could put in an offer.
After a strong rookie season in which he made 67 starts and averaged 26.8 minutes per game, Missi saw his role reduced a little in 2025/26. He averaged 5.7 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks in 19.7 minutes per night across 66 total outings (14 starts).
Nick Richards and former Pelican Kevon Looney are among the veteran big men who have been linked to the Knicks in the event the team has to turn to free agency to address the five.
