The New York Knicks and Minnesota Timberwolves are finalizing a blockbuster trade. This trade involves All-Stars Julius Randle and Karl-Anthony Towns. ESPN confirmed this on Friday night.
The deal has been in the works for 24 hours. Randle and Donte DiVincenzo will join Minnesota. Towns will head to New York. The Knicks will get a center in Towns to address their weakness. Minnesota aims to surpass last season’s Western Conference finals run with added shooting and versatility.
Minnesota will also receive a 2025 top-13-protected first-round pick from New York via the Pistons.
The Charlotte Hornets will be the third team in the trade. They will receive draft compensation, helping make the deal financially viable.
Having just returned to Minnesota for training camp, Towns was focused on building off last season’s success. He was surprised by the “completely unexpected” trade, a source told ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne.
Towns, 28, will immediately start at center for the Knicks. This fills a major need, given Mitchell Robinson is out for at least two months due to surgery.
Towns is a four-time All-Star and two-time All-NBA selection. He has career averages of 22.9 points and 10.8 rebounds, with a 39.8% 3-point shooting rate. Last season, he averaged 21.8 points and 8.3 rebounds, shooting 50% from the field and 41.6% from 3-point range.
The No. 1 pick in the 2015 NBA draft helped Minnesota advance in the playoffs for the second time in 35 years. They made the West finals for the first time in 20 years, losing to Dallas in five games.
Towns will also reunite with current Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau, whom he played under in Minnesota (2016-19).
Randle, 30, averaged 24.2 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 5.0 assists for New York last season. He suffered a dislocated right shoulder in January and underwent season-ending surgery in April.
Randle signed with New York in 2019. Over the past four seasons, he’s played the best basketball of his career. He’s made three All-Star teams and a pair of All-NBA teams, helping the Knicks make the playoffs in three of the past four seasons.
DiVincenzo, 27, inked a four-year deal with the Knicks last summer. He then set a career high with 283 3-pointers. Minnesota eyed him as a free agent after his stint with the Golden State Warriors. His shooting prowess is critical for the Wolves, now without Towns, a top-shooting big man.
The “Villanova Knicks” – DiVincenzo, Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, and Mikal Bridges – will never share the court. This is due to New York’s trade for Bridges from the Brooklyn Nets.
The trade, the first between New York teams in 40 years, involved significant assets. New York sent four unprotected first-round picks, a future Milwaukee Bucks pick, a first-round swap, and a second-round pick.
Minnesota’s position in the second apron and New York’s near the first apron necessitated a third team. Charlotte played this role, using salary cap exceptions to facilitate the deal.
This move allowed the Hornets to leverage draft capital from their exceptions. These exceptions would have been available later in the season, sources noted.
The Athletic was the first to report on these negotiations.
My name is Jakir, I am a content writer, content creator, I give business, sports, finance, trending news and I have 10 years of experience in this and this is my blog goldennews24.com.