Enes Kanter considered entering free agency this offseason, but the New York Knicks center has decided he’ll return to the team in 2018-19.
According to Shams Charania of Yahoo, Kanter will exercise his $18.6 million player option. It will be the final year of his contract.
New York Knicks center Enes Kanter plans to exercise his $18.6M player option today to return to the team next season, league sources tell Yahoo Sports.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 29, 2018
The mere thought of Kanter leaving New York seemed fiscally irresponsible. Between his status on the court and a market strapped for cash, there’s simply no chance he’d command that money as a free agent.
That doesn’t mean he’s not valuable, though.
Last season, Kanter scored 14.1 points and snatched a personal-best average of 11.0 rebounds. He shot 59.2 percent from the floor, the highest mark of his NBA career.
The Knicks will need every bit of that production at the beginning of the season, since Kristaps Porzingis is recovering from an ACL injury.
Kanter will reprise his role as the starting center.