REPORT: Knicks get Karl-Anthony Towns in blockbuster trade with Timberwolves

Monster trade sure to produce many different opinions.

Final Trade Update: According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania and Jon Krawczynski, both of whom initially reported the news, this is how the full three-team trade looks like:

New York Knicks get: Karl Anthony-Towns

Minnesota Timberwolves get: Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo, Keita Bates-Diop, 2025 DET 1st-Rd (Top-13 protected)

Charlotte Hornets get: DaQuan Jeffries, undisclosed future draft picks

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Shams Charania reported late Friday night that the Knicks have a deal in place to trade Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for Karl-Anthony Towns.

For a few weeks now, there have been rumors that the Knicks were in the market for a center to sure up their center depth. Those speculations grew even louder after news broke that Mitchell Robinson would be out until December or January. But for an even longer period, the rumor was that Leon Rose and the front office wanted to trade Towns. And with every passing day that Randle and the Knicks couldn’t come to terms on an extension, the possibility seemed to grow little by little.

That being said, with everything that Randle had gone through in New York, it still seemed like a longshot that the Knicks would go all in on a player who many didn’t see as an upgrade. That belief turned out to be false though with Charania’s report. As Fred Katz was quick to point out though, the deal also included the Charlotte Hornets to help facilitate the trade as both teams are above the first apron. The Hornets will receive DaQuan Jeffries and draft compensations.

Towns, a New Jersey native, does offer a unique skill set as one of the best shooting big men of all time. He will instantly allow the Knicks to play a five-out scheme giving Brunson all the space he could ask for and it is evident by his time playing next to Rudy Gobert, that he’ll be fine slotting in as a power forward and operating next to the aforementioned Robinson when he returns too.

That being said, it’s also important to note the cons of the trade. Towns is not the passer or playmaker that Randle is and losing DiVincenzo means trading away one of the best shooters in the league. And while the trade signifies that the front office is ready to build around Brunson and his skillset, it also puts even more pressure on Brunson to create and orchestrate the offense by himself, while also relying on Towns, Anunoby, Bridges, and Deuce McBride to make up for DiVincenzo’s talent as a dynamic, quick-trigger, high-volume shooter with range especially while on the move.

Another thing to consider is the fact that the Knicks may have also pulled the trigger on this trade because of the contract situations of the two players. Towns, who is a year younger than Randle, does have a significantly larger cap hit, earning an average of $55 million over the next four seasons with a player option for the fourth and final year. That is quite a significant amount of money, but New York’s front office may have preferred the security and stability since Randle could’ve turned down his player option next season.

Adding another interesting wrinkle to this blockbuster trade is the fact that Towns previously played for head coach Tom Thibodeau. While the team had some decent success during his tenure there, Thibodeau’s time in Minnesota ended on less-than-ideal terms so it will be intriguing to see how the reunion between the two play out.

Obviously, there is a lot to unpack here and we likely won’t know how to fully grade out this trade until we see both players and both teams in action. But it is still a bittersweet day. Towns, if fully engaged, could turn this offense into one of the best ones in the league, capable of keeping up with, if not outshooting the likes of the Celtics and the Pacers.

But the Knicks and their fans are also saying bye to two very popular players. Randle, despite being a polarizing figure, chose to come to New York when not many did and grew tremendously as a player and a person during his tenure, which won over a lot of fans. And the All-NBA forward, who gave his all the city and franchise really thrived as a rim-attacking playmaker last season, especially after the Knicks acquired OG Anunoby. And DiVincenzo, in his lone season as a Knick, quickly became a fan favorite with his microwave shooting and chemistry with the other Villanova players.

Due to the popularity of the players and the pros and cons of the actual on-court fit, this trade will surely provide many different opinions. Some will hate saying goodbye to Randle and DiVincenzo and view this trade as a sideways move if not a downright downgrade. Others will see the vision and love the offensive potential that this group can have.

But regardless of what you think of the trade, the only thing fans can really do is believe at this point. Believe in this front office. Believe in Thibodeau. And believe in the players, from Brunson, and Anunoby, to Josh Hart. It may be difficult to do so at times like this, but for almost the entirety of Rose and Thibodeau’s tenure as a Knick, believing and trusting them has worked out more times than not.