New York Knicks owner James Dolan said he wants the team to stay below the NBA's second tax apron for the 2026-27 season, a payroll line that could shape how much of New York's rotation returns this offseason.
Hoops Rumors reported Dolan's comments from WFAN's The Carton Show on June 17. Dolan said ownership would stretch financially to keep the group together, but he described the second apron as a line the franchise should not cross.
Dolan Draws A Second-Apron Line
The Knicks already have roughly $201 million committed to eight guaranteed salaries, according to Hoops Rumors. Karl-Anthony Towns' $57 million salary is the largest number on the sheet, and most of the guaranteed money is tied up in starters Towns, OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart.
That makes the bench decisions more complicated before free agency even opens. Jose Alvarado holds a $4.5 million player option, while Mitchell Robinson, Landry Shamet and Jordan Clarkson are headed toward unrestricted free agency.
Mohamed Diawara and Ariel Hukporti can become restricted free agents at the end of the month if the Knicks issue qualifying offers. Hoops Rumors noted that Diawara's Non-Bird rights could make a new deal harder if another team pushes his market; he appeared in 69 regular-season games but had a limited postseason role.
New York's Bench Math Gets Tight
The report said no cap rule prevents the Knicks from re-signing their own players, but keeping all of them would almost certainly require crossing the second apron. A market-value Robinson contract by itself could move New York close to or above the projected $221.7 million second-apron threshold.
That threshold matters because the second apron is more than a luxury-tax bill. Teams above it cannot use any portion of the mid-level exception, aggregate multiple player salaries in a trade, send cash in a trade, or acquire a player through a sign-and-trade for salary matching.
Teams that finish a season above the second apron also face a draft-pick penalty: their first-round pick seven years out is frozen, limiting its trade value unless the club gets back under the line in later seasons.
Roster Flexibility Is Now The Core Issue
Hoops Rumors wrote that Dolan did not say whether his stance was driven by the apron restrictions or by payroll control. Either way, the practical effect is similar for a roster already carrying five expensive starters.
If New York stays below the second apron while retaining part of its bench, the front office may need to lean more heavily on veteran-minimum contracts and rookie deals. For the Knicks, the first offseason question is how many useful rotation spots can be preserved before the NBA's harsher roster-building penalties start closing options.