I actually sort of like what the Knicks did this off-season.
Got Robin Lopez for 4/$54M. Good value for a solid center in his prime (27). Will likely pair well with whoever they eventually get to play PF.
Arron Afflalo for 2 years/$16M. A reasonable contract.
Kyle O'Quinn for 4 years/$16M. Really like this one. Sort of got buried in ORL, but did reasonably well in the minutes he had. Little risk, and could turn into a solid player on a good team. Maybe a first big off the bench.
Derrick Williams for 5/$10. Second year player option. Not sure what he did to merit the player option. Not totally against taking a look at him, but this contract isn't my favorite. At least he is still young.
In the draft lottery, they got unlucky by falling to #4 in a draft where the top 3 guys were pretty clear cut. They took Porzingis, and we will just have to see how that works out for them.
When you compare what the Knicks did with the Lakers, it's even more impressive. The Knicks were realistic and modest and had a plan on what they wanted to do. The Lakers continued to assume everyone would want to play for what they apparently still view as a destination franchise.