Knicks president Donnie Walsh claims that the team's extra cap room makes the return of soon-to-be free agent David Lee more likely.

"It's much better for David," Walsh said. "That I'll tell you."

Walsh added that he'll evaluate the team's players from now to the end of the season.

"But for all the players on the team now, they got to show they can play intense playoff-type basketball," he said.

The New York Post points out that if the Knicks are able to land both LeBron James and another max-level free agent this summer, Lee's time with the Knicks will be over.

"At the end of the day, it's not going to come down to money but what direction the Knicks want to go in the future," said Lee. "And a lot of it is what LeBron and the top three guys, LeBron, Bosh, [Dwyane] Wade, do.

"I love it here in New York," he added. "It's been my home for five years. ... I hope to be here in the future."