The New York Knicks shocked the NBA world last summer when they pulled off a blockbuster deal for Karl-Anthony Towns. One season later, New York is poised to take control of the Eastern Conference and potentially win a title next season.
Knicks get a low grade for Karl-Anthony Towns trade
While Towns had a great debut season in the Big Apple, it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. As a result, Bleacher Report’s Grant Hughes regraded the blockbuster and gave the Knicks a C- grade.
“Last season, the Knicks posted a plus-5.2 net rating with a 119.5 offensive rating overall, and both numbers were markedly better when Towns shared the floor with Brunson…right up until the playoffs,” Hughes wrote. “Against dialed-in opponents, the modest in-season synergy between the Knicks’ top two offensive players nearly disappeared while the defense got even worse. Teams spammed pick-and-roll sets those two couldn’t cover, exposing a concerning postseason frailty.”
Jalen Brunson and Towns were a great duo offensively, but as Hughes pointed out, they were disastrous defensively. The defensive issues were also a culmination of Tom Thibodeau’s poorly run schemes, which resulted in his firing upon season’s end.
New York acquired Towns for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo. Those two players were a huge part of the Knicks’ success the previous season and were key factors in the Minnesota Timberwolves’ run to the Western Conference Finals last season.
The Knicks needed to make the trade for Towns
Parting ways with those two players was a tough pill to swallow, but it was a necessary move. Entering last season, Mitchell Robinson was going to miss significant time recovering from offseason ankle surgery, so they needed to add a center to enhance the frontcourt.
The Knicks will have a different look next season with Mike Brown taking over as head coach. The hope is that he is able to maximize Towns’ abilities and make him a much bigger threat on the court than he was through the second half of last season.
Until they can bring home a championship, many will question whether or not the trade for Towns was worth it. The hope is that next season is the year they prove that they are championship-caliber with him as a key part of their team.
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