As the 2024 NBA season ramps up, the basketball world is buzzing with one of the most significant moves of the offseason. The New York Knicks are coming off an impressive 50-win season, and expectations for the season are at an all-time high. The Minnesota Timberwolves, led by Anthony Edwards, advanced to the Western Conference finals, exceeding expectations for the franchise. The Knicks are looking to have a lot of success this year, but with that being said, significant changes had to be made to keep the team moving toward a championship.
The New York Knicks, Minnesota Timberwolves and Charlotte Hornets made a blockbuster deal on Oct. 2. The Knicks acquired Karl Anthony Towns from the Timberwolves and draft rights to James Nnaji from the Hornets, while the Timberwolves, in return, got Donte DiVincenzo, Julius Randle, Keita Bates Diop and a future first-round pick from the Knicks. The third team in the deal, the Charlotte Hornets, acquired Charlie Brown Jr, Daquan Jeffries, Duane Washington Jr and two future second-round picks via the Knicks. They also acquired a 2025 second-round pick and cash considerations from the Timberwolves.
The three-team deal came as a shock to the basketball world. However, the Knicks needed center depth after losing Isaiah Hartenstein to free agency and Mitchell Robinson, who is out with a hamstring injury until January. Towns, the 28-year-old 7-foot center, is a versatile player who will open up the floor for the Knicks with his ability to score from beyond the arc and in the paint. The presence of Towns should create a lethal pick-and-roll game between him and Brunson, a connection that should expand throughout the season. The four-time all-star averaged 21.8 points and 8.3 rebounds per game in the 2023-2024 season. Besides his impressive size on the floor, Towns can also shoot the ball well, as he won the 2022 NBA 3-point competition.
The Timberwolves will receive a lot of depth in return, which will help them contend for a championship run this season. DiVincenzo was a crucial player in the Knicks’ success last season, averaging a career-high 15.5 points per game while shooting over 40 percent from three. He came in clutch during the Knicks playoff run, hitting a game-winning three to secure Game 2 for the Knicks against the 76ers. They also got Randle, who brings size to the power forward position for the Timberwolves to go along with their center Rudy Gobert. Randle had a season-ending shoulder surgery last season but looks to bounce back in a new uniform along with young stars Edwards and Jaden McDaniels.
Apart from this big blockbuster trade, the Knicks had a hectic offseason. They re-signed star forward O.G. Annouby to a five-year, 212.5 million-dollar contract, whose addition from the trade deadline last season was crucial to the Knicks’ getting the number two seed in the Eastern Conference. In early July, the Knicks acquired Mikal Bridges from the Brooklyn Nets to pair him with former Villanova teammates Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart. Bridges is one of the premier defenders in the league and is a durable player who should be able to go out every night and produce on both ends of the court for the Knicks. They also extended star point guard Brunson to a four-year, $156.5 million contract extension.
The Knicks had been trying to trade for Towns for a couple of years and finally got it done right before preseason games began. Before the Towns trade, every fan was excited about the “Villanova Knicks,” with former college teammates DiVincenzo, Hart, Bridges and Brunson all being on the same team. Even without DiVincenzo, the Knicks have an unmatched chemistry that can get them far in the season. In contrast, the Timberwolves hope to build on their tremendous success from last season while creating one of the best rosters in the league.
Photo Credits: “Karl-Anthony Towns” by Erik Drost is licensed under (CC BY 2.0).
