J.R. Smith has a $2.5 million option with the Knicks, and at that price New York could use his firepower off the bench (erratic though it may be).
The question for him is simply this: How much can he make elsewhere? He is a New Jersey native and loves NYC, but like the rest of us if you’re willing to double his salary he’ll move wherever you need.
That’s essentially what he told Newsday (via IamaGM):
We will have the answer inside of three weeks, when Smith has to make his decision. Right now his agent is working the phones, checking out back channels and seeing what kind of offers will be out there on the open market.
My guess, he stays put. Teams are being pretty frugal with the new Collective Bargaining Agreement out there. But one way or the other we’ll know before the end of the month.
