Knicks suspend contract extension talks for Karl-Anthony Towns, Josh Hart ‘until later in the season’

The New York Knicks announced Friday that they are suspending all negotiations on contract extensions with eligible players — including Karl-Anthony Towns and Josh Hart, key starters on the team that won the NBA championship back in June — until “later in the season.”

“As an organization, our entire focus is on preparing for the upcoming season and delivering another year for our fans to be proud of,” a Knicks spokesperson said in a statement issued to multiple news outlets on Friday. “As a result, we will not be negotiating contract extensions until later in the season and will remain solely focused on preparing for the start of the season.”

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Towns, Hart, sixth man Miles “Deuce” McBride and reserve point guard Tyler Kolek are all eligible for extensions of their current contracts. Towns, who holds a $61 million player option for 2027-28 campaign, is eligible for an extension worth a maximum of $276 million over four years. Hart, whose deal includes a $22.4 million team option for 2027-28, can extend for up to $132 million over four years.

McBride, now entering the final year of the three-year, $13 million extension he signed in 2023, is slated to reach unrestricted free agency this summer. Kolek, a second-round pick out of Marquette in 2024, has a $2.5 million team option for 2027-28.

After spending the summer celebrating their remarkable domination of the Eastern Conference and five-game victory over the San Antonio Spurs in the 2026 NBA Finals, the honeymoon following the franchise’s first title in 53 years appeared to end on media day last month, when it became clear that a lack of progress in extension talks was a paramount concern for Towns, the All-Star center who played perhaps the best basketball of his life during the Knicks’ run to the championship, and Hart, whose relentlessness so often fueled New York’s best moments, heading into the new season.

Karl-Anthony Towns (left) and Josh Hart are two of four extension-eligible Knicks who will have to wait to negotiate their next deal. (Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/nba/breaking-news/article/knicks-suspend-contract-extension-talks-for-karl-anthony-towns-josh-hart-until-later-in-the-season-141716316.html

Author : Dan Devine

Publish date : 2026-10-09 14:12:00

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