Steve Mills: Knicks had to be 'aggressive' to sign Hardaway Jr.
The New York Knicks went above and beyond what they had to in order to secure the services of restricted free-agent Tim Hardaway Jr., giving the 25-year-old a four-year offer sheet worth $71 million.
The Atlanta Hawks were reportedly willing to go in the ballpark of $48 million to keep him, begging the question why the Knicks felt so inclined to pay over $20 million more than they probably had to.
"We watched him, in our opinion, grow over his time in the player development program that they had in Atlanta," Knicks president Steve Mills said Monday, according to News Day's Al Iannazzone. "So we decided he was a target.
"We felt like there are not that many opportunities in free agency that you have the opportunity to go after a 25 year old. We made the decision that if you want to pry a restricted free agent away from the incumbent team you have to be aggressive. So we made a decision to be aggressive."
Mills also mentioned he reached out to Hardaway Jr. a little after midnight on the eve of free agency, although the four-year guard said he didn't hear from the Knicks until a few days later.
It had previously been reported that the contract offer came as a huge shock to many within the organization, and rightfully so. Hardaway Jr. had been a Knick to begin his career, and wasn't exactly setting the world on fire last season with the Hawks, even with a career-best 14.5 points per game.
Nonetheless, Hardaway Jr. steps into a larger role now for a rebuilding Knicks squad, which could blow up even more so if All-Star forward Carmelo Anthony is moved. Mills is sticking to his guns on not feeling he and the team overpaid, having the utmost confidence his new talent will deliver the goods and justify his salary.
"As we look at the numbers we believe Tim is a starting two guard in this league," Mills added. "Our trajectory for him is to be a starting two guard, the capability of being a starting two guard for the rest of his career. And those guys average 16, 16.5 million dollars today. So that’s how we came to the decision."