Former Golden State Warriors center James Wiseman has landed his next NBA opportunity, signing a training camp contract with the New York Knicks after just five game over the past two seasons.
Wiseman is a gamble and luxury the Knicks can afford to take coming off the NBA championship, offering a perspective the Warriors could never get with the former second overall pick.
Knicks can treat James Wiseman exactly how Warriors never could
This isn't the first time Wiseman will essentially join a team who won the title only months earlier. Sure, he was part of the Golden State roster for the triumphant 2022 championship, but he showed up for training camp in October of that year without having played in a game for 18 months.
The problem for he and the Warriors was there was at that stage, still the pressure and expectation of being a recent second overall pick who was supposed to be the future face of the franchise after Stephen Curry.
Wiseman could never live up to that during his nearly three years with Golden State, and the franchise had to constantly grapple with the balance of developing the 6'11" big man while trying to maintain their championship ambitions.
That proved an impossible task and left Wiseman as their biggest regret of the past decade or more, having passed on potential trade opportunities and future All-Stars like Tyrese Haliburton, LaMelo Ball and Deni Avdija.
Knicks can afford to take flier on James Wiseman
Fast-forward to now and the Knicks too are looking to remain a strong championship favorite, yet they don't have anywhere near the same attachment to Wiseman. Those on the outside may still view the 25-year-old within the prism of being a draft bust, but those within the four walls will simply see Wiseman as another player just trying to make the roster.
He'll undoubtedly place some pressure and expectation on himself to perform, but that won't necessarily be shared by others. In fact, after also signing John Konchar, Drew Eubanks, Bruce Brown and Ochai Ajbaji in a slew of recent free agency moves, it will be considered a major surprise if Wiseman can make it through training camp, preseason and onto the main Knicks roster come opening night.
It's a completely different situation the Warriors had with their once prized asset, making for an interesting watch on whether Wiseman can take advantage of his latest opportunity.
Wiseman has played in just 152 games across his five NBA seasons with Golden State, the Detroit Pistons and Indiana Pacers. He made four appearances for the Pacers early last season, averaging 3.3 points and 2.0 rebounds in 14.5 minutes per game.
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