New York Knicks and Orlando Magic are set to have veteran big men exchange teams once the NBA moratorium period comes to an end on July 9th.
Over the weekend, the Knicks agreed to terms with former Magic reserve big man Kyle O’Quinn. Today the Magic have agreed to terms with former Knicks reserve big man, Jason Smith.
Following from Shams Charania of Real GM.
New York free agent Jason Smith has agreed to a one-year, $4.3 million deal with the Orlando Magic, league source tells RealGM.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 7, 2015
Smith was the most consistent player on the Knicks last year and for the last half of the season, after the All-Star break, he might have been the best player on the team. New York underperformed as an entire unit but that can’t discredit Smith’s solid play for the Knicks. He played well in his role as a stretch big man for the Knicks, a player who has the ability to step out to shoot a midrange jumper and can hit a three when needed.
While guys like Andrea Bargnani, Tim Hardaway Jr and Langston Galloway came into their own with additional minutes for the Knicks, Smith was the only member of the team to play all 82 games last season. On the season, he averaged 8 points per game, 4 rebounds, while shooting 43% from the field in 21.9 minutes per game.
