Why the Knicks Traded For Towns

The Knicks, understandably, were not willing to enter the season without a reliable, proven starting center.

Wow.

It's remarkably rare to see two 50-win teams trade key components on the eve of training camp, but that's what went down last night when the Knicks and Timberwolves reportedly agreed to a blockbuster trade, swapping Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo for Karl-Anthony Towns.

Wow. 

As of Saturday morning, we are still waiting on the final particulars. The deal is complicated by the new CBA, which prevents Minnesota (because they are above the second apron) from taking back less salary than they are sending out. Charlotte is reportedly the third team in the expanded deal, as they will acquire DaQuan Jeffries' in a sign-and-trade and some form of future draft compensation. In addition to Randle, DiVincenzo and a future protected first-round pick via Detroit, it appears the Knicks will also ship Keita Bates-Diop to Minnesota. 

Yet, assuming that no other rotation players are included in the final iteration of the trade (which is not a guarantee), this primarily comes down to Randle and DDV for KAT. And that's certainly enough to keep us busy projecting, prognosticating and second-guessing. 

Plenty of Knicks fans were confused, and many of them dismayed, when the news broke last night.  And understandably so. This trade represents a seismic shift in the organization. I've received a bunch of emails and texts over the past 12 hours asking why New York would take this risk.  

So, let's get right down to the nitty-gritty. As with every significant move, there are potential pros and cons. I won't try to wax poetic here. Instead, I'll break this thing down into bullet points. Let's start with the primary reason Leon Rose and company felt compelled to trade for KAT (and his massive salary). 

🏀 Karl-Anthony Towns is really, really good at basketball.
For his career, Towns, the former No. 1 overall pick in the 2015 draft, is averaging 22.9 points, 10.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 0.8 steals, 1.3 blocks per game.

Towns is, and this is not hyperbole, one of the best shooting big men the league has ever seen (just ask him). Dating back to the start of the 2019-20 campaign, KAT has averaged 2.3 made three-pointers per contest while shooting 50.7% from the floor, 40.2% from downtown and 84% from the free-throw line.

That's insane efficiency from a big man.

In fact, only two players in NBA history have averaged 10+ rebounds per game and shot over 37% from downtown in their career: Larry Bird and Karl-Anthony Towns.

KAT is the only player in the history of the sport to average more than 20 points and more than 10 boards while shooting above 50% from the floor and above 39% from deep. 

To put his numbers in context against some of his contemporaries, since entering the league in 2015, Towns has:
Scored more points than Jimmy Butler and Kyrie Irving 
Grabbed more rebounds than LeBron James and Anthony Davis
Blocked more shots than Joel Embiid or Nikola Jokic
Posted a higher FG% than Kawhi Leonard or Steph Curry 
Posted a higher 3PT% than Kevin Durant or Bradley Beal

Again, he is more than just a good offensive player. Towns is a generational offensive talent with an unparalleled combination of size, skill and shooting accuracy.  

🏀 Fit Alongside Brunson
As if it wasn't made clear in the Captain Naming ceremony this offseason, the Knicks are Jalen Brunson's team. 

Since Brunson emerged as a legit superstar and the focal point of the franchise, the New York front office began building a roster around their JB that accentuates his strengths and masks his deficiencies. They traded IQ and RJ for OG. They gave Josh Hart a massive new contract. They cashed in nearly all their draft capital for Mikal Bridges. All these moves were made with Brunson in mind.

Having Towns suit up alongside Brunson, Anunoby and Bridges makes the Knicks almost unguardable. With Towns as a stretch-5, many a defense will be stretched beyond their breaking point trying to prevent Brunosn from operating in his mid-range office while OG, Mikal and KAT are camped out behind the arc, ready to fire away you from 3-point range. Opposing coaches will have nightmares trying to figure out how to stop JB/KAT pick-and-rolls.

While Randle and Brunson have experienced regular-season success playing together, KAT is a better all-around fit for this roster - especially when considering the gaping hole New York needed to patch in the middle… 

🏀 KAT at the 5 > Randle at the 5
This trade does not go down if the CBA's wacky "Early Bird Rights" rule doesn't prevent the Knicks from re-signing Isaiah Hartenstein.

This trade probably doesn't go down (at least not now) if Mitchell Robinson is healthy. 

But we live in a world where the Knicks were conceivably going to be forced to start Jericho Sims at center (with Precious Achiuwa backing him up) on Opening Night vs. Boston and against Joel Embiid in Philly a week later. 

New York has championship aspirations THIS SEASON. They have a legitimate chance to hoist the Larry O'Brien trophy eight months from now. It's been nearly 30 years since anyone could make that claim without having their sanity questioned. 

The Knicks, understandably, were not willing to enter the season without a reliable, proven starting center. 

For years, we've talked in depth about coach Tom Thibodeau's unwillingness to even experiment with Randle at the 5. It seemed as though Thibs' hand was finally going to be forced. But Thibs and the front office concluded that trading the excess depth they had at guard and forward made this roll of the dice worth the risk. 

🏀 A Full Season to Work Out the Kinks
The timing of this trade is fascinating.