Andre Drummond, the Knicks’ new backup big man, isn’t a prolific shot blocker like Mitchell Robinson, who signed with the Celtics. But Drummond brings some other things to the table that he believes will help the Knicks win a second consecutive championship, he told James Edwards III of The Athletic.

“I’ve been a master at what I do,” Drummond said. “I’m able to rebound the ball at a high clip still. Obviously, (I help) with the addition of the three-point shot and being able to be a good pick-and-roll defender. I’m also a great locker-room guy. That’s what has kept me around.”

Drummond, who played for Philadelphia the past two seasons, signed a one-year, veteran’s minimum contract early in free agency. He’s entering his 15th NBA season.

“This is the first time I’ve been the only new guy to a team,” he said. “It feels weird. It’s like an outcast, trying to fit in. But the guys have been very welcoming.”

Here’s more on the New York teams:

• Nets forward Michael Porter Jr. recently declared that he feels the team can win 50-plus games this season. Porter stood by that prediction during the team’s media day. “Yeah, I mean the question was framed like he said, ‘Can you guys win 50 games?’ Of course I’m not going to say, ‘No, we can’t win 50 games,’” Porter said, per Brian Lewis of the New York Post. “And I do genuinely believe you’re supposed to go out on the floor every night with delusional confidence and compete to win. And I do think we have the players that every single night our goal should be to win. And we can win.” Porter’s teammate Terance Mann was even more emphatic about hitting that mark. “That’s the goal from Day 1. We said our goal is to get 50 wins,” Mann said. “So you’re going to have to go in there with the mentality that we’re going to get 50 wins. And that’s through the guys with years [of experience] leading that. Most of us came from winning situations, so we know what it takes, and that’s just what we’re going to do.”
• Nets general manager Sean Marks has hoarded assets via the trade market in the last few years. Marks doesn’t have any plans to cash in on those assets for a star player right away but that could change, depending on how well his young roster develops, Lewis writes. “I’m not sure we’re going to be any more active than we’ve been in the past, but it doesn’t mean we’re not listening,” Marks said. “It doesn’t mean we’re not shaking trees and seeing what’s out there, for sure. So a lot will be predicated first and foremost on what this roster looks like, and we’ll get a good feel for that pretty good.”
• Tyler Nickel’s two-way deal with the Knicks is a two-year contract, running through the 2027/28 season, Spotrac contributor Keith Smith tweets. Nickel signed his two-way deal on Sunday. As a senior with Vanderbilt last season, the 6’7” wing averaged 13.5 PPG, 3.3 RPG and 1.2 APG on .445/.400/.847 shooting in 36 games, all starts (30.6 MPG).