Landry Shamet Finds Stability and Pride in Rewarding Knicks Contract

Landry Shamet is experiencing a sense of clarity and stability with the New York Knicks that he has never before had in his NBA career. Entering his ninth season, Shamet is with the same team for three consecutive years for the first time, a position he has earned after signing a four-year, $24 million contract this past offseason.

For the previous two seasons, Shamet's status with the Knicks was uncertain at this point in the year. He was on nonguaranteed deals and had to compete for a roster spot. Last year, his place on the team seemed precarious until Malcolm Brogdon's unexpected retirement opened a path for Shamet to secure the final roster spot. His subsequent emergence as a key contributor during the team's championship run led to the significant new contract.

"It definitely gives you a sense of perspective and appreciation that I’m grateful for," Shamet said after practice. "To be believed in and have that offered to me, for me and [his fiancée] Cammi to be able to stay here in New York and continue to grow this thing, it’s pretty special. To be asked to be a part of it is humbling and I’m grateful for it every day. It means a lot."

Shamet stated that finally having certainty about his standing is both freeing and rewarding. "In a way, it just makes me proud of myself," he said. "That’s why you work through the difficult times and the challenging and the questioning ones. Typically, there’s really good stuff on the other end of that. It feels good, it feels good to be a part of this moving forward. I don’t want to drop my level or get complacent or any of that, that’s definitely not the feeling. It’s more, it just feels good to know that you don’t have that heavy wave right on your ass again this training camp."

Shamet was one of three backup guards, alongside Jose Alvarado and Jordan Clarkson, who were free agents this past offseason and chose to re-sign with the Knicks. All three players experienced periods during the previous season where they were in and out of coach Mike Brown's rotation. The fact that all three eagerly desired to return, despite inconsistent playing time at times, highlights the strong bond within the team.

"We care about each other," Shamet said. "We want to win for each other. We’re willing to take on different roles and we know that we’ve got each other’s back. If Jose’s got it going and my minutes are shortened, awesome. And vice versa. All of us, Deuce [McBride] included in that, I would throw him in that as well, all of us kind of feel that way. That’s really cool.

"I’ve been saying it, I’ve been a broken record about it, but you don’t see that — from a backup guard position, that’s very rare where no ego or ulterior motives get involved. That’s something special that you want to be a part of."