The New York Knicks could consider trading Miles McBride as the season progresses if they cannot resolve their contract-extension negotiations with the guard.
“Rival teams continue to describe McBride as a likely trade candidate as the season unfolds given the uncertainty surrounding his own Knicks future,” Jake Fischer and Marc Stein reported in The Stein Line on Sunday, October 11.
McBride has expressed disappointment with the lack of progress in negotiations, although his preference remains to stay in New York. The situation presents the Knicks with a difficult decision: reach an agreement with an increasingly important rotation player or risk losing flexibility as his contract approaches expiration.
The 26-year-old guard is entering the final season of his three-year, $13 million contract. He has steadily developed since the Knicks selected him in the second round of the 2021 NBA Draft, growing from a limited rookie contributor into a regular member of the rotation.
McBride averaged career highs of 12.0 points and 2.6 assists in 41 games during the 2025-26 regular season. He also recorded 2.4 rebounds and 0.9 steals per game while shooting 42.3% from the field and a career-best 41.3% from three-point range.
His perimeter shooting has become particularly valuable for a Knicks team built around Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart.
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McBride has made clear that he would prefer to continue his career in New York. According to Kristian Winfield of the New York Daily News, the guard said he was disappointed with the negotiations and hoped the two sides could reach an agreement, adding that he had played through injury.
Head coach Mike Brown has also expressed confidence that the situation can be resolved.
“We’re gonna face a lot of adversity and challenges throughout the course of the year,” Brown said, acknowledging that the contract situation could require a conversation with McBride.
“But at the end of the day, he wants to be here, we want him to be here, and that’s something that I have faith in [president] Leon [Rose] and even Deuce’s representatives to figure that out,” Brown added.
New York’s efforts to retain McBride are complicated by its broader extension negotiations. The Knicks are unlikely to reach extensions with McBride, Towns or Hart before the regular season begins after announcing that all extension talks have been postponed.
Towns’ contract situation is the biggest factor in that process. The four-time All-Star has a $61 million player option for 2027-28, and a significant gap reportedly remains between his expectations and the Knicks’ offer.
Hart is also eligible for an extension, creating another competing financial priority. Owner James Dolan has said the organization will not cross the NBA’s second tax apron, limiting its ability to retain every player on expensive contracts.
Those constraints could make McBride’s negotiations increasingly difficult if the Knicks prioritize commitments to their established starters.
