Atletico Madrid have won the race to sign highly coveted Benfica forward Joao Felix, with Benfica announcing they had reached an agreement to sell the 19-year-old for a fee of €126 million and Atleti confirming the deal.

Atletico Madrid also put out a tweet featuring Felix in the club's colors walking through the capital city's Prado museum with the caption "pure talent" following the most expensive transfer in club history, surpassing the €72m they paid for Thomas Lemar last summer.

Felix has already passed his medical and signed a seven-year contract with Atleti, the club announced in a subsequent story on their website.

The fee is the fifth highest ever paid for a player after the transfers of Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Philippe Coutinho and Ousmane Dembele.

#PuroTalento pic.twitter.com/ehvuo8YBNI

— Atlético de Madrid (@Atleti) July 3, 2019

Felix, who has been likened to Cristiano Ronaldo, attracted the attention of top European clubs, including Manchester City and Manchester United, after an impressive debut season with Portuguese champions Benfica.

It was the second big move of the day for Atleti, who earlier announced that Mexico international Hector Herrera was joining the club on a free transfer after his contract expired at Porto.

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Benfica had insisted in recent months that Felix would only leave if his €120m release clause was paid, but ultimately received slightly more from Atleti for the transfer because they requested to pay the fee in installments.

Atletico needed a replacement for French forward Antoine Griezmann, who announced last month he was leaving the Rojiblancos this summer after five seasons at the club.

Felix scored 15 goals and set up nine more in 26 league appearances and had been tied to Benfica until June 2023.

He made his national team debut in a 3-1 win over Switzerland in the UEFA Nations League semifinal on June 6 and started three days later as Portugal beat the Netherlands, 1-0, to lift the trophy.

Felix is Atletico's fifth summer signing following the arrival of Brazilian centre-back Felipe from Porto, the acquisition of Argentine forward Nicolas Ibanez from Mexican side Atletico San Luis, Marcos Llorente from Real Madrid and Herrera.

Ibanez will be loaned to Atletico San Luis for the 2019-20 campaign.

Atletico finished runners-up to Barcelona in La Liga and will play in next season's Champions League.

Middlesex 520 (Malan 199, Simpson 115) drew with Derbyshire 557 for 6 dec (du Plooy 118, Dal 92) and 178 for 6 dec (du Plooy 69*, Hosein 61)

Derbyshire survived a last-day scare to deny Middlesex an improbable victory in their County Championship Division Two match at Derby.

After Dawid Malan's 199 and John Simpson's 115 had taken Middlesex to 520, Derbyshire were wobbling at 39 for 4, only 76 runs in front.

But South African batsman Leus du Plooy followed his first-innings century with an unbeaten 64 and 61 from Harvey Hosein took the home side to 178 for 6, a lead of 215, when the teams shook hands on a draw.

That was the most likely outcome at the start of the day as Malan and Simpson took their stand to 224, one short of the seventh-wicket record by any county against Derbyshire, before the Middlesex skipper pushed a return catch to Matt Critchley. He had batted just over eight-and-a-half hours, passing his career-best 182 not out, and was the 68th batsman in the history of the game to be out 199.

With Fynn Hudson-Prentice falling one short of a hundred for Derbyshire, it was the only time in a first-class game in England that batsmen have scored 99 and 199.

Simpson's century and his stand with Malan was more significant for Middlesex, who had gone from a position where defeat was very much a possibility, to one where they could put Derbyshire under pressure.

Billy Godleman and Luis Reece negotiated four overs before lunch while extending the lead but the position changed dramatically after the interval as four wickets fell for 16 runs. Godleman's tentative push at Tom Helm resulted in an edge to Simpson and Hudson-Prentice was run out in the next over when he was sent back and failed to beat the throw from midwicket.

Reece missed a sweep at Nathan Sowter and Alex Hughes bagged a pair when the leg-spinner found his outside edge to leave Derbyshire in trouble on 39 for 4.

The advantage was only just past 100 when du Plooy edged Toby Roland-Jones but Sam Robson, stationed at a wide first slip, was unable to hold on.

Middlesex employed spin at both ends but the runs began to come more freely and by tea Derbyshire were 163 ahead with overs running out.

Sowter had Hosein lbw pushing forward and Malan beat Critchley's defensive prod but the lead was now over 200 and it was no surprise when the draw was agreed with 20 overs remaining.

Glamorgan 449 and 246 for 5 dec (Labuschagne 100, Selman 58) drew with Worcestershire 370 (D'Oliveira 103) and 143 for 1 (Ferguson 70*, Mitchell 64*)

Marnus Labuschagne soon reached the ten runs he needed for his second century of the match and fifth of the Championship season, but Glamorgan's meeting with Worcestershire crawled to a draw as the visitors made no attempt to chase down their target of 326 in 66 overs at Sophia Gardens.

Worcestershire ended on 143 for 1 in glorious sunshine. Ever since the first morning when Joe Leach inserted Glamorgan, his team were on the back foot and, apart from Brett D'Oiveira's splendid all-round performance, his team lacked confidence and will need to improve if they have any hopes of a return to Division One after this season.

At tea, the visitors needed a further 219 from the remaining 34 overs, and with Glamorgan employing attacking fields and the explosive Rikki Wessels next in, there were hopes that Worcestershire might have a go, but the tactics remained unchanged and the supporters - some from over the border - began to drift away disappointed with what they had seen.

Glamorgan had added 109 runs during the morning session and were 325 runs ahead at lunch when David Lloyd declared.

Labuschagne failed to add to his hundred when he swept D'Oiveira to deep square leg, and after Nick Selman had completed two fifties in the game, and Lloyd went for 12, Dan Douthwaite struck a brisk 40 before departing shortly before lunch.

Worcestershire lost Josh Dell for 1 in Lukas CareGlamorgan Head Coach Matthew Maynard said "I thought it was an excellent cricket wicket although it didn't break up as much as I thought it would. I thought we had a chance, but Worcestershire weren't interested which was a bit surprising as they had some quality batsmen to come.

With five championship games to go we stand a good chance of promotion, but after Middlesex it will be all T20, and after that back to red ball cricket".y's second over, but Daryl Mitchell and Callum Ferguson soon settled into their productive partnership against a Glamorgan attack that had minimal assistance from a placid pitch.

Ferguson reached his fifty from 75 balls, but Mitchell failed to show any attacking intent and faced 24 more balls than his partner to reach a painstaking fifty.

Glamorgan gained 13 points from the game to remain unbeaten and stay in contention at the top of Division Two, while Worcestershire took 10 points ahead of next week's game against Derbyshire at Kidderminster.

Glamorgan head coach Matthew Maynard said: "I thought it was an excellent cricket wicket although it didn't break up as much as I thought it would. I thought we had a chance, but Worcestershire weren't interested, which was a bit surprising as they had some quality batsmen to come. With five Championship games to go we stand a good chance of promotion."

Lancashire 337 and 247 (Vilas 85, Rimmington 4-42) drew with Durham 281 (Bancroft 77, Rimmington 52, Onions 5-93) and 194 for 6 (Bancroft 92*)

This day began with Dane Vilas driving Chris Rushworth through the off side, the ball skimming across the perfect Cumbrian outfield to the spectators at the Powell End; but it also began with swifts swooping and banking in the blue air; and with Rough Fell sheep, motionless on the slope of Winder below Canada Wood.

This day ended with Cameron Bancroft taking a single off Rob Jones to move his score to 92; but it also ended with the players shaking hands on the draw and with Bancroft receiving the warmest of ovations as he returned to the Knowles Pavilion; and with darkly beautiful shadows on Baugh Fell behind him; and with a series of fond partings after four days filled with summer's green perfections.

"Farewell you northern hills, you mountains all goodbye," wrote Ewan MacColl. "Moorlands and stony ridges, crags and peaks, goodbye…Days in the sun and the tempered wind and the air like wine / And you drink and you drink till you're drunk on the joy of living."

Yes, we have been spoilt; yes, we have been absurdly lucky. It is not only the farmers who have made hay when the sun shone these last four days. The cricketers have been fortunate, too, and perhaps it was fitting that both sets of players were content when they left Sedbergh this rich evening. Both Rushworth and Nathan Rimmington paid the ground and the occasion warm compliments. "It's like a postcard wherever you look," added Bancroft.

Rimmington had a particular reason to be content. He collected career-best match figures of 8 for 116 when he took two of the last three Lancashire wickets to fall this morning, but by then Durham needed 304 to win in a minimum of 79 overs. Few folk fancied their chances of doing it. Then fewer still were bullish when Alex Lees was bowled playing no shot to Saqib Mahmood and Gareth Harte lost his off and middle stumps when beaten for pace and lowish bounce by the same bowler. Bancroft then cover-drove Keaton Jennings for an exquisite boundary and we had lunch, an interval enlivened by bizarre rural conversations.

"How's that lad, Anderson?" asked a spectator. "Not good," we replied. "He's struggling with a tight calf." "Oh, I know what that's like," "Really, are you an athlete of some sort?" "No, I'm a vet."

We drifted into our afternoon's cricket and it began badly for Durham when Jack Burnham played no shot to the sixth ball after the resumption and lost his middle stump to Graham Onions. But the next 90 minutes belonged to the visitors as Bancroft grimly risked the possibility of injury by getting forward whenever he could, thus negating movement and at least limiting the impact of low bounce. Graham Clark was similarly obdurate and even some Lancashire supporters found fruition in the prospect of a full day's cricket. Sedbergh has offered an infinitude of peace these midsummer days.

Some watched from the Evans End, where, on the public footpath beyond the ground's perimeter, folk could sit on benches and watch cricket without paying a penny. It has been christened the Yorkshire End. On the field Lancashire needed a wicket and an attack lacking both James Anderson (calf) and Liam Livingstone (side) was flagging. Then a ball from Bohannon bounced low and took out Clark's off stick. Five overs later, Onions, bowling round the wicket to encourage uncertainty about line, had the left-handed Liam Trevaskis caught by Jones at slip. Durham were 122 for 5 at tea and we looked forward to a full evening session.

Yes, we have been privileged. Yes, Sedbergh is a privileged environment but they have shared their wonderful facilities with the cricket community this week. And they have done so with glorious generosity. Cricket has mattered here for nearly two centuries. Take the school's late 19th century "Cricket Song".

If you've England in your veins,

And can take a little pains,

In the sunny summer weather, when to stay indoors is sin,

If you've got a bit of muscle,

And enjoy a manly tussle,

Then go and put your flannels on and let the fun begin!

Sedbergh School Songs, in which those lines appear, was published in 1896 and looks forward to Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee the following year. The subtext - maybe main text - is that of the cultivation of an imperial ethos. The illustration opposite "Cricket Song" shows Sedbergh boys playing cricket in the shadow of Winder and then men playing the game in some unnamed foreign clime with the Union flag flying prominently.

These days the school is more concerned to provide the counties with players. Harry Brook, Jordan Clark, George Hill all learned their cricket on the square where Bancroft's resilience reached new heights this final evening. After Ned Eckersley played on to Mahmood he was joined by Ben Raine and the pair saw Durham through the final 22 overs.

Lancashire's bowlers became provoked into experimentation, at one stage placing four short extra covers for Raine. But nothing budged him and nothing shifted Bancroft either. The West Australian batted for 288 minutes and faced 191 balls today. He has now scored 332 runs in his last four innings and though his form may be too late to get him in the Ashes squad, he looks like a Test opener.

The rest of us must soon shift ourselves this perfect evening. The shadows are now on Winder and their patterns change with every passing moment. There is brass band music playing in the hospitality tent: hymns and tunes of glory. The players are long gone and in half an hour or so the rest of cricket's caravan must join them.

But we are changed. No one who has spent the last four days at Sedbergh could be otherwise. This little world and its perfect cricket ground will stay with us. There are children playing cricket on the outfield; there is drinking in the tent; there is new light on Baugh Fell. And enfolding it all is the joy of living.

England 305 for 8 (Bairstow 106, Roy 60) beat New Zealand 186 (Latham 57, Wood 3-34) by 119 runs
As it happened

This was not quite how England had dreamed of making the World Cup semi-finals for the first time since 1992. Falling away after a fast start with the bat and then defending 305 rather than 355 or more, their method to rumble New Zealand in Durham was less the hyperactive, we'll-chase-anything way of Eoin Morgan and Trevor Bayliss than that of Australia's table toppers. But after 44 years of hurt dating back to the very first global tournament in 1975, one suspects that Morgan's men could not have cared less. They are now two wins away from lifting the cup, and the outpouring of relief at reaching the pointy end of the competition was palpable, even if it was momentarily delayed by a streaker who ran almost as many rings around ground security staff as Morgan's men did around Kane Williamson's.

The result all but knocked Pakistan out of contention for the semi-finals. For them to make the final four, they need to bat first against Bangladesh, score at least 308 and then dismiss Mashrafe Mortaza's side for 0. And if Pakistan pile up 350, they need to beat Bangladesh by 312 runs in order to qualify at the expense of New Zealand. However, Pakistan will be knocked out immediately if Bangladesh bat first on Friday.

Watch on Hotstar (India only): Full match highlights

On Wednesday, England owed much to Jonny Bairstow, after another strong-armed century at the top in the reassuring company of Jason Roy and Joe Root. Others also contributed, whether Morgan in an innings that looked more important the longer the day went on, pivotal late runs from Adil Rashid and Liam Plunkett, then a collective bowling and fielding display that showed precision, discipline and a little too much class for a New Zealand side all too reliant upon Williamson's runs.

It was Williamson's exit, run out by a deflection when backing up, that more or less put the crowd at Chester-le-Street into celebratory mode. New Zealand will now have some time to think about their cricket, and they will be given plenty of pause by how their batting has gradually broken down under the sustained spotlight of the round robin cup format.

New Zealand will be frustrated, too, by how they never challenged a target that was reduced in size by at least 50 runs in the final 20 overs of England's innings. The Durham surface slowed up more rapidly than most predicted at toss time, but was still good enough for Tom Latham to stroke his way to an attractive 57 - with a little more support at the other end, the target would not have been so far out of reach. For the most part, though, this was England's day to breathe a sigh of relief and celebrate a little. They are where they need to be, albeit not quite by the means they expected to get there.

Watch on Hotstar (India only): Bairstow's century

A sunny summer's day, a fresh but dry pitch and the tournament's trend towards rewarding target defenders all pointed strongly to Morgan to bat first, and he did so gladly against opponents lacking the hamstrung Lockie Ferguson. Williamson offered up an opening gambit - Mitchell Santner to take the first over - that was very nearly rewarded by a skidding arm ball that beat Roy and narrowly missed leg stump before scuttling away for four byes.

But that was about all that could excite New Zealand for the first 30 overs, as England gave the appearance of setting a platform for a huge score. What they were in fact doing, through Roy, Bairstow and Root, was something rather more vital - they were using the best of the batting conditions to win the match in its first couple of hours. Boundaries flowed against New Zealand bowling that dropped short or drifted wide, Bairstow particularly savage, and had final score predictions lurching well beyond 350 as England marched to 194 for 1 after 30 overs.

WATCH on Hotstar (US only) - Highlights of England's 119-run win

Bairstow's innings was his second century in as many World Cup innings, and third in three against New Zealand: he had clearly roused himself to a peak of performance via the tight corner England had found themselves in after losses to Sri Lanka and Australia. His cover driving and pulling verged at times on the brutal, making the very most of pace on the newish ball and allowing Roy to play something more of a supporting role until he miscued to cover - a sign of things to come.

Roy was angry with himself, his bat thudding into the ground as he bellowed "No!" to everyone and no-one at Chester-le-Street. But there was no immediate loss of momentum as Root rotated the strike in typically proactive fashion and ushered Bairstow to three figures. The loss of Root, to the faintest touch on a hook at Trent Boult, was a surprise, but signalled the start of a markedly different phase in the game.

Undoubtedly the pitch became more challenging, denying the batsmen consistent pace to work with. But equally New Zealand used its vagaries effectively, mixing up their paces and seam positions to coax a succession of miscues. Bairstow, having given his hundred a David Warner-esque celebration leap, dragged Matt Henry on. Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes and Woakes all picked out fielders they tried to drive over and beyond, and Morgan, having played an innings both slightly skittish and ultimately effective, was unable to evade Santner at cover.

At 272 for 7 with Morgan's exit, New Zealand had a glimpse of a chase for just 280 or so, but Rashid and Plunkett played vital cameos to breach the 300 barrier. If New Zealand went to the innings break hopeful of challenging England, they were quickly to be set back - partly by their own misjudgment.

Woakes' first over was sharp and accurate, so much so that his first ball to Henry Nicholls hit the back pad in front of the stumps and drew a quick raised finger for LBW. Neither Nicholls nor Martin Guptill seemed eager to review, a call shown to be faulty when ball-tracking had the delivery going comfortably over the stumps. That early breakthrough was exactly what England needed, and it was followed up by some decidedly fast overs from Jofra Archer, who looked far freer in his movements after some struggles with a side problem.

Guptill was dismissed when, trying to glance, touched the ball too finely and so allowed Buttler to capitalise with a superb diving catch, built upon fine balance and anticipation of what was coming. That wicket brought Ross Taylor in to join Williamson, and for a few overs they set about trying to set a platform with all the reserve of two players who know their value to the New Zealand side. At 61 for 2 the Durham crowd was just starting to tense, when a backing up Williamson was run out by a Taylor drive deflected off Mark Wood's fingertips into the stumps.

As if in shock, Taylor chose the following over to take an extremely optimistic second run on Rashid's arm at fine leg and was comfortably run out, despite a dive, and just as Jimmy Neesham and Latham seemed to be forming their own union, the former was squeezed out by Wood's pace and tight line from around the wicket. When Colin de Grandhomme obligingly swivelled Stokes' first ball to Root in the deep, it was virtually party time for England, leaving Latham and the lower order to concentrate on limiting the size of the margin.

Troubled Nottinghamshire batsman Joe Clarke is expected to learn on Thursday what punishment, if any, he will face from the ECB over his role in the infamous WhatsApp messaging group that came to light during the trial of his jailed former Worcestershire team-mate Alex Hepburn.

Clarke is due to appear before the independent Cricket Discipline Commission to answer charges that he brought cricket into disrepute by being part of the group, in which the members discussed sexual conquests. Yorkshire's Tom Kohler-Cadmore has also been charged by the ECB with bringing the game into disrepute.

Hepburn was found guilty of rape in April and jailed for five years.

Neither Clarke nor Kohler-Cadmore were charged with any criminal offence and there is no suggestion of any criminal wrongdoing by the pair, who have already been punished to a degree by their exclusion from the England Lions squad.

Clarke has suffered a slump in form since the Hepburn verdict, scoring just 143 runs in his last 13 Championship innings, with questions asked about whether Nottinghamshire can afford to keep accommodating him in their line-up as they fight to avoid relegation from Division One.

Head coach Peter Moores is pleased that matters may now be coming to a head, hoping that "closure" to the issue might help Clarke regain his focus.

"Joe's situation will come to a close quickly now," he said. "If I have a view, it's that there needs to be closure so everyone can move on with his game. For the matter to reach a conclusion would be good for him."

Moores admitted it had been difficult to quantify the effect that Hepburn's trial and the disrepute charge had had on Clarke's form.

"Assessing the impact something has on a player's game is never an exact science," he said. "You never know exactly what is going on in someone's head.

"But Joe's approach to his cricket has been top notch. He works hard. What happened with him is a tough one he has to work through it."

Free-agent center Boban Marjanovic has agreed to a two-year, $7 million deal with the Dallas Mavericks, league sources told ESPN on Wednesday, confirming multiple reports.

The 7-foot-3, 290-pound Marjanovic averaged 7.3 points and 4.6 rebounds in 11.7 minutes per game for the LA Clippers and Philadelphia 76ers last season.

Marjanovic, 30, will provide the Mavericks with depth at center. Dwight Powell, who agreed to a three-year, $33 million contract extension earlier this week, is the probable starting center. Kristaps Porzingis, who agreed to a five-year, $158 million maximum contract in the opening minutes of free agency, will likely start at power forward but see some playing time at center as well.

Marjanovic showed improved offensive skills this past season, averaging 8.2 points while shooting 62.5% from the field in just 13.9 minutes per game after the 76ers acquired him as part of the Tobias Harris deal with the Clippers in February.

His defense, however, has been a problem and was the main reason the backup center played such a limited role during Philadelphia's playoff run (9.5 minutes per game). During a seven-game, second-round series loss to the Raptors, Philly was a plus-90 with starting center Joel Embiid on the floor and a minus-111 without him. 

Marjanovic, a native of Serbia known for his fun-loving personality and who had a role in the movie "John Wick 3," has career averages of 6.2 points and 3.9 rebounds while playing for the San Antonio Spurs, Detroit Pistons, Clippers and 76ers.

Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott did not violate the personal conduct policy and will face no discipline for a May incident in Las Vegas, the NFL announced Wednesday.

Elliott was briefly detained but not arrested in the incident, when a security guard fell to the ground after being bumped by the running back.

The NFL said it conducted a comprehensive investigation that included interviews with multiple witnesses, including security personnel and others with direct involvement, as well as a review of documentary and other information.

Elliott, 23, met with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell for several hours on Tuesday to discuss the incident and what he had learned.

Elliott issued a statement following the meeting in which he said he had made a poor decision and needs to work harder to not put himself in such situations.

"I've worked hard to make better decisions and to live up to the high standards that are expected of me," Elliott said in the statement. "I failed to do that here and I made a poor decision.

"I need to work harder to ensure I do not put myself in compromised situations in the future. I am rededicating myself to use all of the resources that the league has made available. But in the end, it is up to me and I am determined not to be in this position again."

Elliott could have been fined or suspended under the league's personal conduct policy, which does not require an arrest or conviction for a player to be penalized.

But Goodell determined there was no violation and no further action was warranted.

Elliott, a two-time Pro Bowler, was suspended for six games by the commissioner in 2017 for violating the personal conduct policy. He had been accused of domestic violence by his former girlfriend in Columbus, Ohio, in 2016. Elliott was not arrested or charged by the police, but the league believed it had enough evidence for the punishment despite the lead investigator recommending no penalty. Elliott fought the case through the legal system before eventually relenting and serving the suspension.

Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones said during the offseason he did not believe Elliott would face any sanctions from the NFL over the incident in Las Vegas, and executive vice president Stephen Jones said the incident would not affect the negotiations with Elliott's agent on a long-term contract.

ESPN's Todd Archer contributed to this report.

NEW YORK -- This is not how things were supposed to play out for the New York Knicks.

For much of this past season, there was a steady drumbeat of anticipation that this summer would finally represent a sea change for the franchise. This was the year things were supposed to be different.

But it wasn't.

Even worse, Knicks fans were forced to watch as Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving -- the tandem rumored to be eyeing Madison Square Garden as home -- decided to set up shop across the bridge in Brooklyn.

In the wake of their disappointment -- and following an apology to their fans -- the Knicks spent little time mourning their loss. Instead, in the span of about 20 hours, New York went out and spent $92 million in guaranteed money on short-term deals for six players: guards Elfrid Payton and Wayne Ellington and forwards Reggie Bullock, Julius Randle, Bobby Portis and Taj Gibson.

But the question remains: After missing out on their primary targets, was this a prudent course of action by the Knicks, or not?

The case for New York's moves

For weeks now, the Knicks have been communicating the same message: They were going to chase the top-tier free agents. And if none of them was going to come, they were going to avoid handing out long-term contracts to lower-tier players.

It was a path that seemed informed by mistakes of years past (see: Joakim Noah in 2016 and Tim Hardaway Jr. in 2017). And from the moment free agency began, the Knicks seemed determined to stick to it.

When the franchise knew it wasn't getting anything more than a conference call with Durant and his business partner, Rich Kleiman, on Sunday, general manager Scott Perry made sure he was on a plane to Los Angeles to conduct several meetings with free agents the Knicks hoped to land in the event no stars arrived, including Randle and Bullock.

That helped allow the Knicks to line up all of these moves less than 24 hours into the free-agency period, setting up a roster that is now two deep at every position. They also brought in multiple veterans (Bullock, Ellington, Gibson) with strong reputations to help mentor New York's plethora of young talent, led by RJ Barrett, Kevin Knox and Mitchell Robinson.

While they're not All-Stars, the veteran additions should help the Knicks be more competitive. If there is anything events of recent free-agency periods have taught us, it is that players are interested in going to proven, good situations, where a positive direction is clear. Even the Los Angeles Lakers team LeBron James joined was coming off a 35-win season, more than double the win total of last season's Knicks.

As painful as it might be, the Knicks should look at the Nets as a blueprint. In the span of three years, Brooklyn went from a team with no young players, no draft picks and no hope into one beating New York out for Durant and Irving. The Nets did that by hitting a lot of singles and doubles, slowly improving their team and their position, setting themselves up to make the splash they did in free agency this week.

Are the Knicks going to be a playoff team next season? No. As a result, they should still get at least one more bite at another high lottery pick to continue remaking their roster. But even as that remains the case, they can start to take steps in the right direction. And in doing so, they can stop trying to rush the process along.

The idea that playing in Madison Square Garden -- or any of the other tropes presented through the years -- would lure players to New York has been proved false. Here is what will draw players to New York: competent management, a burgeoning talent base and winning basketball.

With their moves Monday, the Knicks maintained salary-cap flexibility, and gave their young talent a group of veterans to lean on and coach David Fizdale a roster he can mold into a recognizable style of play and identity that could prove attractive to players in the future.

Does that make losing out on Durant and Irving sting any less? No, of course not. But it does provide a road map for the Knicks to finally get themselves out of this never-ending abyss -- a process that should have started in earnest years ago.

Now it's time to see whether they can follow the directions.

The case against New York's moves

Back in March, Knicks owner James Dolan was confident.

"Look, New York is the mecca of basketball," Dolan told The Michael Kay Show. "We hear from people all the time, from players and representatives about who wants to come. We can't respond because of the NBA rules, etc. But that doesn't stop them from telling us, and they do. I can tell you, from what we've heard, I think we're gonna have a very successful offseason when it comes to free agents."

And, in those four sentences, everything that has led the Knicks to this point over the past two years was laid bare for the world to see.

For the better part of a year, the Knicks have been selling a vision of hope for the future. The franchise finished with the NBA's worst record, leading fans in the tri-state area to spend the season watching Duke games and dreaming of Zion Williamson in blue and orange.

And Dolan wasn't the only one selling it.

"It's much more about the perception of the organization," Fizdale said after a morning shootaround in Boston on Dec. 8. "What I think we've done together with [team president] Steve [Mills] and Scott and Mr. Dolan and myself and all our staff is we changed the perception of how we operate and treat each other and what's important."

Instead, the Knicks didn't win the lottery -- something they had only a 14 percent chance of doing, thanks to the flattened odds from the NBA's 2017 lottery reform. Then they didn't come close to signing any stars, leading them to put out a statement Sunday night:

"While we understand that some Knicks fans could be disappointed with tonight's news, we continue to be upbeat and confident in our plans to rebuild the Knicks to compete for championships in the future, through the draft, targeted free agents and continuing to build around our core of young players."

That statement was a far cry from Dolan's comments a few months earlier.

So despite the prudence of the individual moves the Knicks have made since missing out on their primary targets, they don't deserve a free pass for their mistakes leading up to Sunday. They could have been cautious, and they could have stressed the unlikelihood of an impending superteam. Instead, they were brash and confident -- and it blew up in their faces.

Meanwhile, what happened this week can't be discussed fully without circling back to the decision to trade Kristaps Porzingis to the Dallas Mavericks in February. The Knicks have stressed ever since that doing so wasn't about clearing cap space this summer. The front office said it wanted to invest in players who wanted to be there, and that Porzingis did not. There were concerns about Porzingis' injury history, including the torn ACL he spent this past season recovering from.

And they did get enough of a return -- two future first-round picks, Dennis Smith Jr. and the shedding of multiple large, multiyear contracts -- that the deal, like the moves the Knicks made this week, can be justified in a vacuum.

But nothing at 2 Penn Plaza ever happens in a vacuum.

Remember: The Knicks haven't had a single first-round pick get a multiyear second contract with the franchise since Charlie Ward, who was drafted 25 years ago. That fact -- which demonstrates how bad the Knicks have been at identifying, developing and retaining talent in the draft -- shouldn't excuse New York from missing out on future draft compensation in salary-dumping trades.

Despite already having six first-round picks over the next four drafts, this team needs as many assets as it can possibly get. More first-round picks are more bites at the apple, more chips to throw into potential deals down the road. The Knicks could have gotten involved in the trades that sent Maurice Harkless to the LA Clippers (as part of the Jimmy Butler sign-and-trade to the Miami Heat) and Andre Iguodala to the Memphis Grizzlies (as part of the D'Angelo Russell sign-and-trade to the Golden State Warriors). Both the Clippers and Grizzlies landed future first-round picks for their trouble. The Nets made similar moves -- and drafted key pieces such as Caris LeVert and Jarrett Allen, among others, as a result.

Perhaps these picks will wind up having low value. But facilitating these bigger trades were shrewd moves by the Clippers and Grizzlies, acquiring useful players on expiring deals with room that wasn't going to be better spent elsewhere.

To remake this roster and dig out of this hole, the Knicks have to utilize every tool at their disposal. Climbing back to the top of the NBA won't be easy. Doing so while limiting their avenues of improvement will make it that much harder.