Mike Brown makes his Knicks roster battle expectations clear

As it pertains to the final Knicks roster spots, the official word from coach Mike Brown is a genuine competition without preconceived front-runners.

“Whether you’re here on a guaranteed deal, you’re here on a nonguaranteed deal, you’re competing your butt off,” Brown said Wednesday after his first official practice as Knicks coach. “And at the end of the day, we have a lot of time to make a decision on what’s gonna happen, and we’ll figure out who we need to fit and who needs to fit, but it’s gonna be a process. 

“There’s no one ahead of anyone right now.”

The Knicks need to fill two roster spots and only have room under the hard cap to sign one veteran and one rookie. 

Mohamed Diawara, a second-round pick this year, is the only rookie on the roster. But the Knicks have multiple veterans on nonguaranteed deals heading into training camp, most notably Malcolm Brogdon and Landry Shamet. 

As The Post reported, Brogdon is expected to make the final roster and the Knicks will likely use a trade to create cap space to keep a second veteran, with Shamet as the target, but Garrison Mathews and Alex Len are also candidates. 

Around the league, Pacôme Dadiet and Miles McBride are generating the most buzz as players the Knicks might trade. 

The Knicks don’t have to finalize the roster until the start of the regular season in late October. 

Josh Hart wore a splint on the injured ring finger on his shooting hand during practice Wednesday. 

He said he recently aggravated the surgically repaired digit and will have to navigate the season with discomfort.

The 30-year-old said he plans to wait until the offseason to repair the damage, which originally occurred during the playoffs in May. 

Hart was a starter for all of last season — at least until the playoffs — but could move to the bench. Wednesday, Hart wore the white jersey color of the reserves while Mitchell Robinson wore starter blue. Brown, who hasn’t settled yet on the fifth starter, said that meant nothing.