The New York Knicks acquired six players during the 2013 offseason. By the time the current season is over, they will have waived three of the team. As the team sits at 21-34 on the season and running the risk of not making it to the playoffs, disappointment is running high. After not making any trades at the deadline last week, two players are exiting for free agency early.
The New York Knicks have confirmed (via ESPN.com) that both Ben Udrih and Metta World Peace are having their contracts bought out and will be free agents by Tuesday. Both players signed as free agents in the offseason and were expected to have a big impact on the court. However, that has not happened for either Udrih or World Peace, causing things to go in a different direction. Head coach Mike Woodson confirmed that both players would be out by the end of the weekend.
"It was something that was discussed [among team officials], and they decided to pull the trigger on it," Woodson said, via eSPN.com. "Again, it's not complete yet I don't think. I'll know more, probably, after the game. They won't be in uniform tonight. You can't play everybody, and if you're not playing you've still got to be a good teammate and be ready to play when called upon. Unfortunately, I couldn't play them ... I'll get back and talk to [Knicks general manager] Steve [Mills] and ownership [Sunday] sometime and look at the players available out there."
The release of World Peace is no surprise. He has played in just 29 games this season as he continues to have issues with his knees. He had originally signed a two-year, $1.6 million per season contract, but the Knicks no longer feel the need to pay him for just 13.4 minutes per game. No other team has shown much interest in World Peace, so he could be expected to sit on the market for some time.
Udrih is a different story. The point guard has been unhappy with the Knicks for some time over lack of playing time. He requested a trade months ago, something the Knicks did not honor, and now will have to settle for free agency. Plenty of teams showed interest in him when it was thought Udrih was available via a trade, so he could get picked up quickly.
"I kind of feel like when I do the right thing, it's not the right thing in some people's eyes. It's just tough. It's easy to point fingers when the team loses. But it comes down to, we are a team, we lose together. No matter who makes a mistake or who doesn't, it's still a team loss," Udrih said.
So who could pick up Udrih? The Denver Nuggets are an option since the team traded away Andre Miller. The San Antonio Spurs have been looking for point guard depth and the injury of Tony Parker makes that search urgent. The Washington Wizards could also be an option as they too need depth.