The New York Knicks have made the move of the NBA offseason as they acquired Karl-Anthony Towns from the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Heading back to Minnesota for the 4-time NBA All-Star center is a package involving Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo, per The Athletic.
Towns is viewed as one of the elite centers in basketball and has only played for the Timberwolves his entire career after being drafted No 1 overall by the team in 2015.
Minutes before the news of the trade surfaced, Towns posted ‘…’ on his X account. Now, any speculation as to what gave the former Kentucky star pause has been cleared up.
A first-round pick also appears to be headed to Minnesota as part of the deal from the Pistons that New York was in possession of.
Karl-Anthony Towns will be a Knick after New York acquired him on Friday from Minnesota
Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo are leaving the Big Apple to head to the Timberwolves
The Charlotte Hornets would be the third team in this trade as the Knicks look to shape next season’s roster and for another franchise to absorb some of their salary, per ESPN.
The starting five for the Knicks may be as loaded as any in basketball after adding Towns to the mix.
Towns is slated to be joined by Jalen Brunson, OG Anunoby, Josh Hart, and Mikal Bridges.
The Timberwolves did make it further in the postseason last year than the Knicks did, with New York losing in the Conference Semifinals to the Indiana Pacers.
Minnesota advanced to the Western Conference Finals where it was eliminated by the Dallas Mavericks.
The 7-foot Towns is only 28, meaning the Knicks could sign him to a large contract and keep him playing home games at Madison Square Garden for a decade.
Towns did not appear on the trade block before the news surfaced. He appeared to have a great chance to making another deep playoff run again this season with the Timberwolves as Anthony Edwards is the team’s quarterback.