3 Teams in the Running for Nick Richards
Big men are still in demand as the offseason wears on into the summer, and surprisingly, Nick Richards is still out there on the market. According to a report, three teams still have strong interest in the former Chicago Bulls, Phoenix Suns and Charlotte Hornets center.
The Heat, Knicks and Lakers are among the teams to show free agent interest in Nick Richards.
— Evan Sidery (@esidery) July 20, 2026
One of the best remaining centers on the open market, Richards would sign to a contender for the veteran’s minimum. pic.twitter.com/fguSsD9m9V
The Miami Heat, New York Knicks and LA Lakers have been linked to Richards.
The oft-injured center sports a 7-foot-2 wingspan to contest shots and protect the paint. At 6'11", 245 pounds, he's a solid rebounder on both ends of the court. On the offensive end, he operates primarily as a pick-and-roll threat. He is a good finisher around the rim.
Since establishing himself as a full rotation player (and sometimes starter) over the last four years, Richards has averaged 8.4 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 1.0 block on 61.8% shooting from the floor.
New York Knicks
The Knicks have been linked to Richards for some time, particularly after a strong target of theirs, Jonas Valanciunas, came off the market after heading home to Lithuania.
The NBA champs would like to fill out their center position behind Karl-Anthony Towns and newly-signed Andre Drummond. And to be honest, Richards offers a better set of skills for what New York needs than Valanciunas would have.
In fact, Richards is actually a decent facsimile for the departed Mitchell Robinson, playing the same type of game (while also bringing the risk of time missed to injury, as Robinson did).
Miami Heat
The Heat have Bam Adebayo and Giannis Antetokounmpo at center and power forward, but only Bobby Portis as a legit, veteran backup for both those spots. They're searching for another big man for depth in the middle, and someone else to help out on the glass. Richards would address those needs.
LA Lakers
The fit in LA is a bit more intriguing. After their huge sign-and-trade splash to land Walker Kessler, a legitimate starter in the middle, the Lakers recently signed Kevon Looney as a backup center, while also having added Sandro Mamukelashvili to play both power forward and center in a small-ball, more up-tempo lineup. Is going after Richards as well a bit of overkill?
Dan Woike of The Athletic wrote this week that the Lakers are indeed continuing to monitor the market for additional big men. With Kessler always an injury risk, adding another body down low might be a nice fallback.