New York Knicks get Amar'e

NEW YORK -- The New York Knicks reached an agreement in principle Monday with free agent Amare Stoudemire after receiving assurances it would not be an impediment to their pursuit of LeBron James.


The All-Star forward will receive a five-year, $99.7 million contract that will reunite him with coach Mike D'Antoni.

By landing Amare Stoudemire, the Knicks now have more possibilities, writes ESPN.com's John Hollinger. Story

Stoudemire's agent, Happy Walters, said last week there was a "structure of an offer on the table," but no actual offer was put forth by the Knicks until they met with Stoudemire at Madison Square Garden on Monday afternoon. The deal cannot be signed until Thursday.

"The fact that Amare really wanted to come here and stepped up front, it got to the point that we had to acknowledge that," team president Donnie Walsh said. "That means something to us."

More here: http://sports.espn.go.com/new-york/nba/news/story?id=5356502