Knicks Sign Brown, Agbaji, Wiseman To Non-Guaranteed Deals

A busy week of transactions for the Knicks continues, with the team announcing on Wednesday (via Twitter links) that it has signed free agent swingman Bruce Brown, wing Ochai Agbaji, and center James Wiseman to non-guaranteed Exhibit 9 contracts.

A versatile 6’4″ guard who can defend multiple positions, Brown appeared in all 82 regular season games for the Nuggets last season. The 30-year-old averaged 7.9 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.0 steal in 24.4 minutes per game, with a solid shooting line of .475/.385/.762.

According to Steve Popper of Newsday (Twitter link), there are executives in New York’s front office who have been fans of Brown for “a long time.”

Agbaji was the 14th overall pick in the 2022 draft but bounced around the league in his first four NBA seasons, spending time in Utah, Toronto, and Brooklyn. The 6’5″ shooting guard showed promise as a third-year player with the Raptors in 2024/25, averaging 10.4 PPG and 3.8 RPG with a .399 3PT% in 64 games (45 starts), but saw his playing time and his production drop off significantly last season.

After averaging 5.1 PPG and 2.3 RPG in 15.7 MPG across 62 appearances for the Raptors and Nets in ’25/26, Agbaji didn’t receive a qualifying offer from Brooklyn and became an unrestricted free agent in July.

As for Wiseman, the No. 2 overall pick has battled health issues since entering the league with the Warriors in 2020, missing the entire 2021/22 season due to a knee injury and then tearing his Achilles at the start of the ’24/25 campaign.

In 152 total regular season outings for Golden State, Detroit, and Indiana, the big man has averaged 9.0 PPG and 5.5 RPG in 18.8 MPG while shooting 56.0% from the floor. He made just four appearances for the Pacers last season, with brief stints on the roster to open the season and again in December.

It appears that Brown, Agbaji, Wiseman will be among the players competing for a back-end spot on the Knicks’ regular season roster during the training camp and preseason. Center Drew Eubanks and wing John Konchar, whose Exhibit 9 contracts were also officially announced by the team today (via Twitter), will be in that mix as well.

The Knicks took a similar approach to their final roster spot a year ago, when Landry Shamet beat out Malcolm Brogdon, Garrison Mathews, and Matt Ryan to make the team. Shamet ultimately emerged as a trusted part of the rotation and signed a new four-year contract with New York earlier this offseason.

More to come…