For their Kevin Durant consolation prizes, the Knicks went into a spending frenzy by signing four players — three power forwards and swingman Reggie Bullock.
They added two young power forwards, former Lakers lottery pick Julius Randle and Bobby Portis to fill their vacant power-forward slot, according to sources.
And the reeling Knicks also bulked up their frontcourt depth by adding a third forward in native New Yorker Taj Gibson, a 34-year-old defensive specialist who they hope will be a solid influence on the young core.
Randle, the former Lakers and Pelicans big man, will sign a three-year, $63 million deal, according to ESPN. However, the third year is a team option.
Past midnight, sources told The Post the Knicks signed the 6-foot-11 Portis to a two-year, $31 million deal. Portis is a restricted free agent, but the Wizards planned to rescind his qualifying offer.
Portis, a 2015 first-rounder, averaged 14.2 points and eight rebounds for the Wizards and Bulls, who drafted him with the 22nd pick.At 2 a.m., The Athletic reported the Knicks had come to terms on a two-year, $20 million deal on Bullock, a 3 and D type.
After the signings, the Knicks were down to $17 million in cap room and did not have enough space left to add Kawhi Leonard. After missing out on Durant and Kyrie Irving, Knicks president Steve Mills had wanted to sign Tier 2 or Tier 3 free agents to one- or two-year guaranteed deals. The Knicks didn’t want to give Randle or Gibson a fully guaranteed third year, which would give them less flexibility in 2021, when Giannis Antetokounmpo can become a free agent.
The Post first reported the Knicks’ interest in the 24-year-old Randle last month. He’s an athletic, 6-foot-9 big man, but has some issues on defense and with his basketball IQ, according to scouts. Randle did not exercise his player option that would have paid him $9 million.
One NBA scout told The Post he sees Randle, a former lottery pick, as more of a sixth-man type than starter on a good team.
“He is a beast, plays hard but can only get to so far due to how he sees the game,’’ another NBA scout told The Post on Sunday. “I’m not sure about his basketball IQ and perimeter shooting. And he’s not the most conscientious defender.”
One NBA personnel man who was part of the decision-making process to draft Randle feels he’ll be productive. He was selected seventh in the 2014 draft.
“He’s a double-double machine,’’ the personnel man said. “He can pass it too, but he struggles defensively. But he’s strong. He can even play some point forward because he’s very quick for his size. He’s a player you have to game plan for but he’s not perfect. There’s some empty-calorie stats but he’s really talented.’’
After the Lakers beat the Knicks at Staples Center during the 2017-18 season, Knicks president Steve Mills and GM Scott Perry felt Randle had such an impact on the game with his athleticism around the rim, it actually refocused their mission on making the Knicks more athletic, according to sources.
Former Lakers coach Luke Walton begs to differ on his defensive shortcomings. In a game during which he was miked for TV, he told Randle, “You’re the best one-on-one defender in this league.”Randle’s metrics also are extremely impressive — tied for 36th in the league in Player Efficiency Rating. Randle averaged 21.4 points and 8.7 rebounds last season in New Orleans in what was his best season in the NBA.
Gibson is already well-established after 11 NBA seasons, including this past season, which he spent with the Timberwolves. He averaged 10.8 points and 6.4 rebounds in 24 minutes and punished the Knicks in their last visit to Minnesota with 25 points and eight rebounds.