Knicks Acquire Karl-Anthony Towns in Blockbuster Trade With Timberwolves

With everything quiet on the NBA player movement front for the past couple of months, we get a blockbuster trade to announce that the new season is just about upon us. The New York Knicks have acquired 4-time All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns from the Minnesota Timberwolves for Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo and a first-rounder.

CONFIRMED: The New York Knicks have acquired Karl-Anthony Towns from Minnesota for Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo and a first-round pick via Detroit.

H/T @ShamsCharania & @JonKrawczynski

More details: https://t.co/YojvhEYnhu https://t.co/e9xL6CbeKF pic.twitter.com/vellHvzWAQ
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) September 28, 2024

Center was certainly the Knicks biggest need heading into the season, and Towns will certainly address that. The 28-year-old was the No. 1 overall pick by Minnesota in the 2015 NBA Draft. He averaged 21.8 points and 8.3 rebounds per game in 2023-24.

The Knicks really took off as a serious contender last season even with Randle out with injury for the last few months of the season and playoffs, and now have added both Towns and Mikal Bridges (earlier this offseason) to bolster their lineup further.

Per New York insider Ian Begley, the Knicks "see Towns as a great fit with their other high-end talent and someone who complements the rest of the core well, league sources say. They also feel Towns gives them a strong opportunity for sustained success, per sources in touch with the team".

Towns and Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau have a history as they were together in Minnesota, while Knicks president Leon Rose used to be Towns's agent.

Minnesota had interest in Donte DiVincenzo as a free agent last summer, says ESPN's Tim Bontemps, before he signed with the Knicks. DiVencenzo brings some critical three-point shooting to the Wolves.

This is a massive move for both teams, and leaves each of the contenders with starting lineups that look like this:

Knicks potential starting 5 for 2024/2025:

PG: Jalen Brunson
SG: Josh Hart
SF: Mikal Bridges
PF: OG Anunoby
C: Karl-Anthony Towns
— NBATradeReport (@NBATradeReport) September 28, 2024

Mike Conley
Anthony Edwards
Jaden McDaniels
Julius Randle
Rudy Gobert

Better than last season? 👀 pic.twitter.com/bxLnCwvDQp
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) September 28, 2024

Randle is a three-time All-Star himself, and brings a potential 24-25 points per game to Minnesota to pair up with the explosive scoring of Anthony Edwards.

With the trade, the T-Wolves break up their twin tower arrangement of Rudy Gobert and Towns.

The Charlotte Hornets are the third team in the deal, as the Knicks are sending salary — including DaQuan Jeffries — and draft compensation to Charlotte.

Let the 2024-25 season begin.