One of the first dominoes of the Knicks’ offseason now has clarity.
Jose Alvarado declined his $4.5 million player option for next season, but he’s returning on a three-year deal worth over $14 million, according to ESPN.
The decision allowed him to, instead of playing on the one-year option, sign a multiyear deal that carries a lower average annual value than that $4.5 million.
That is crucial because the Knicks are operating in accordance with owner James Dolan’s wishes to stay below the second apron and have a tight budget in order to do so.
Alvarado’s deadline for the decision was originally on Monday, but he and the Knicks agreed to push it back to Friday, after the NBA draft.
He emerged as a key bench piece for the Knicks’ championship run, providing the Knicks with a true backup point guard that they lacked before his arrival.
He also added a bit of snarl and feistiness to a team that, at the time, needed it.
They acquired him — after a series of moves that started with sending away Guerschon Yabusele — just ahead of the deadline.
President Leon Rose recently praised Alvarado as one of his best under-the-radar moves in building the Knicks into champions.
“That was huge,” Rose said on the “Roommates Show” podcast, “because we did need another ball handler, we needed another person that could put it on the floor and take some of the pressure off.”
His playing time varied, but by the postseason and Finals, he was playing critical minutes.
Alvarado memorably scored eight points and drilled two 3-pointers during the Knicks’ historic comeback in their 107-106 win in Game 4 of the Finals.
Alvarado, 28, is also a local kid, having been born in Brooklyn and played high school basketball at Christ the King.
