Allan Houston is leaning toward rejoining the Knicks but likely will wait until tomorrow before making a final decision, according to a person close to the veteran shooting guard.

Should Houston choose the Knicks over the Nets, there is no guarantee that he will make the 15-man roster. Isiah Thomas currently has 15 players with guaranteed contracts and would have to make one roster move in order to keep second-round pick Demetris Nichols. If the Knicks elect to keep both Nichols and Houston, the club would have to eat two contracts, which wouldn't make fiscal sense.

When asked why he would go to such great lengths to bring in Houston at the expense of possibly releasing a younger player, Thomas said: "It's out of respect. He's a great Knick. He wants to come back and give it a shot."