Knicks to decline Pacome Dadiet's fourth-year option, freeing $5.37 million for 2027-28

The New York Knicks will not pick up Pacome Dadiet's fourth-year option. That ends the rookie-scale path for the 2024 first-round pick, who will become an unrestricted free agent next June. SNY insider Ian Begley confirmed the decision on Thursday. ESPN's Shams Charania reported it first and put the option's value at $5.37 million for the 2027-28 season.

The move was not a surprise. New York took Dadiet, a French wing, with the 25th pick in 2024, and he has never found a place in the rotation. SNY's figures show he played 18 games as a rookie and averaged 1.7 points on 32 percent shooting. Last season he played 29 games, scored at the same rate and shot 33 percent. At 21, he has appeared in one of the Knicks' five games this season. He played one minute and grabbed one rebound.

Money is the bigger reason. Hoops Rumors puts the option at exactly $5,373,608 and notes that Dadiet was the only player on the roster with a rookie-scale team option for 2027-28. Taking that figure off the books gives the front office more room in the summer of 2027, which already looks complicated. The Knicks hold a team option on Josh Hart, Karl-Anthony Towns has a $61 million player option, and Miles McBride is on course for unrestricted free agency. Charania noted that both sides could still talk about a new deal once Dadiet reaches the open market. For now, though, New York has chosen flexibility over another year of waiting on a prospect who has not developed.

Nothing changes on the court right away. Dadiet stays under contract for the rest of this season and remains at the end of the bench.

What it means for Friday in Philadelphia

The Knicks travel to face the 76ers on Friday, October 30 (Prime Video). Their start has steadied a little. After losing three straight to open the season, they have won two in a row. They beat Detroit 111-97 at home, then won 133-127 in Chicago, their highest-scoring game so far. That leaves them 2-3. Philadelphia handed them their first loss, 106-100 at the Garden, so Friday is an early chance to get even.

The board for the game has the Knicks narrowly favored. On the moneyline, Novig lists New York at -115 and Philadelphia at +113. BetRivers has the best price on the 76ers at +114, just one point above Novig, so the 12 venues are very close on this side. The spread sits at Knicks -2.5, which Novig prices at +106, and the total is 227.5. Sportsbook hold runs from roughly 3 to 4.5 percent on the moneyline.

The Dadiet decision will not shape that game. It does show what the front office is weighing as the season gets going: a roster built to win now, and a salary sheet it wants to keep flexible for the summer of 2027.