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Immanuel Quickley of the New York Knicks celebrates his three point shot.
New York Knicks‘ top reserve Immanuel Quickley enters the season as the betting favorite to win the NBA Sixth Man of the Year.
After losing to Boston Celtics‘ Malcolm Brogdon last season despite his late push, Quickley is a 5-1 favorite, according to BetOnline. Despite being angered by Boston by trying to trade him to the Los Angeles Clippers this summer, Brogdon remains Quickley’s chief rival with 7-1 odds.
Rounding up the top five betting favorites are the same cast that finished in the top five of last season’s Sixth Man of the Year race: Clippers’ Norman Powell (10-1), Milwaukee Bucks’ Bobby Portis (12-1), and Sacramento Kings’ Malik Monk (14-1).
Quickley is coming off a career season, averaging 14.9 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists while shooting 44.8% from the field. He showed star potential in 21 spot starts this past season, averaging 22.6 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5.1 assists while shooting 47% from the field and 40% on 3-pointers.
Knicks’ Deep Bench
The oddsmakers view the Knicks bench as one of the deepest next season, with Josh Hart and Donte DiVincenzo also making the betting list for the NBA Sixth Man of the Year.
Josh Hart (25-1) is tied for the eighth-best odds with Indiana Pacers’ Bennedict Mathurin and Brooklyn Nets’ Cam Thomas. Knicks free agent acquisiton Donte DiVincenzo is a longshot at 66-1 odds.
Quickley, Hart and DiVincenzo are the backbone of the Knicks second unit with their playmaking, rebounding, 3-point shooting and strong perimeter defense.
Quickley and DiVincenzo will be the top two guards off the bench while Hart is expected to fill Obi Toppin‘s void, backing up Julius Randle at power forward.
Immanuel Quickley’s Contract Extension Talks
There’s no substantive talks yet between Quickley’s camp and the Knicks with regards to a contract extension, according to Heavy Sports‘ NBA insider Sean Deveney.
“No substantive stuff. There is basically a month or so, but in these things, that is plenty of time,” the source told Deveney on September 9.
One NBA executive told Deveney that Quickley is seeking a large payday.
“He is going to want nine figures,” the executive told Deveney. “And that’s for four years. I can’t say the Knicks will go that high but they might have to. He is not a guy you want to send to restricted free agency.”
The 24-year-old Quickley is set to earn $4.17 million next season on the final year of his rookie-scale contract — a bargain considering his impact on the Knicks last season.
Quickley has dreams of becoming a starter down the line, but it’s going to be hard to achieve that in New York with last season’s breakout star Jalen Brunson, 3-and-D wing Quentin Grimes and RJ Barrett ahead of him in the rotation.
But delaying an extension for Quickley until next summer when he is set to become a restricted free agent next summer would be tempting fate. Quickley is a potential trade candidate at next February trade deadline if he doesn’t get extended this offseason.
The oddsmakers are betting on Quickley to have another Sixth Man of the Year-caliber season. Will the Knicks also bet on him big?
Alder Almo is a basketball journalist covering the New York Knicks and Golden State Warirors for Heavy. He has more than 15 years of experience in local and international media, including broadcast, print and digital. He previously covered the Knicks for Empire Sports Media and the NBA for Off the Glass. Alder is from the Philippines and is now based in Jersey City, New Jersey. More about Alder Almo
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