By Shams Charania, John Krawczynski, Fred Katz, and Mark Beaulieu
The New York Knicks are close to a trade for four-time All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns, league sources said. The athlete. The Knicks will send the Minnesota Timberwolves a package centered around forward Julius Randle, guard Donte DiVincenzo and a future first-round pick.
Towns, 28, has spent his nine-year career with the Timberwolves since being selected No. 1 in the 2015 NBA Draft. He averaged 21.8 points and 8.3 rebounds per game in the 2023-24 season, and returns to the All-Star level after missing most of the 2022-23 season with a knee injury.
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– Karl Anthony Towns (@KarlTowns) September 28, 2024
After winning 50 games last season, their most in a decade, the Knicks made significant moves to upgrade a roster built around 28-year-old guard Jalen Brunson. Beyond Towns, the team acquired winger Mikal Bridges in an early summer trade with the Brooklyn Nets and re-signed forward OG Anunoby.
The Timberwolves are coming off a 56-win season in which they advanced to the Western Conference Finals behind the surging play of Anthony Edwards. Randle, 29, was an All-Star for the third time in his career last season but underwent shoulder surgery in April. At the time, the Knicks announced that his condition would be re-evaluated in five months.
DiVincenzo, 27, had a career-high 15.5 points per game last season while shooting 40.1 percent from 3. The Timberwolves will be his fifth NBA team in four seasons.
The Knicks will also send DaQuan Jeffries and a future draft pick to the Charlotte Hornets as part of the deal, league sources said. The athlete.
What does this mean for the Knicks?
The Knicks have a guy they’ve thought about for years. They approached the Timberwolves about Towns two years ago. And last year. Then again after that. All eyes have been on the lookout since team president Leon Rose took over the team in 2020, leaving his previous position leading the basketball division of CAA, the agency that represents Towns. Now, he finally got his man.
Towns brings the Knicks some elements they desperately need, especially after the recent injury news regarding Mitchell Robinson, who is targeting a December return as soon as he had offseason ankle surgery: size and shooting. There aren’t many 7-footers in history with the city’s shooting touch. And the Knicks, who only hired Precious Achiuwa and Jericho Sims as health centers, now have help on the board, an area coach Tom Thibodeau wants to control as much as anyone. — Fred Katz, National NBA Writer
How do the Knicks compensate for the loss of Randle and DiVincenzo?
The Knicks won’t be able to return to contention for four years without Randle, who signed with the team and helped revamp its image over the past half-decade. He has made three All-Star teams and two All-NBA teams since arriving in New York. He was scoring 20 points and 10 boards, and he could make passes that no one else on the team could, thanks to his size and strength. It gave them a unique element in the position.
Of course, Towns can do the same thing — and do it from 7 feet with an endless array of low moves.
DiVincenzo’s departure means the end of a “Nova Nex” that never was. He just broke the franchise record for 3-pointers made in a season, but Towns, a 40 percent long-range shooter, will make up for the distance he lost with his greatest sniper.
The Knicks aren’t deep right now. Just moments ago, DiVincenzo, Josh Hart and Myles McBride were all expected to come off the bench. Now that DiVincenzo is gone, Hart appears to be the favorite to slot into the starting lineup, and McBride appears to have a bigger role waiting for him.
In an instant, the identity of this team changed again. — Katz
(Photo: David Berding/Getty Images)
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