Timberwolves Rumors

Wolves Notes: Gobert, Randle, Edwards, Minott, Finch

October 5th, 2024 at 5:28pm CST by Arthur Hill

After spending the past two seasons trying to adapt his game to fit with Karl-Anthony Towns, Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert suddenly has a new frontcourt partner after this week’s trade with the Knicks. In an interview with Mark Medina of Sportskeeda, Gobert said he should be just as effective playing alongside Julius Randle.

“He’s a very smart player. He’s very versatile,” Gobert said. “I think that I’m going to be able to help him with my screening, with my spacing and my gravity and make his life even easier. I’ll try to get him as many easy baskets as he can get. He’s a guy that I know will make the right play. When the defense collapses, I know he’s good at kicking out. When the big helps, he’s good at finding his bigs. He’s a very smart player. We got a lot of games to get used to making mistakes and learn how to maximize him for us as a team.”

Gobert called Towns “a great friend” and credited him for being supportive after Gobert was acquired from Utah. They were able to take Minnesota to the conference finals for the first time in 20 years, even though Gobert admitted there were a lot of doubters along the way. He’s looking forward to competing for a title with the new-look Wolves, saying that Randle and Donte DiVincenzo are battle-tested veterans.

“To be able to win a championship, we have to be able to overcome adversity as a group,” Gobert said. “If the closeness is not there, when there’s adversity, then you’re going to break apart. We’ve been through a lot of adversity in the last two years as a group. I know Julius and Donte have been through adversity. They know what it is. They both have this type of maturity. They both are also guys that want to win. They understand that winning is not always pretty. So I’m excited about that.”

There’s more from Minnesota:

The Towns trade provides the Wolves with more financial flexibility and reduces the danger that Anthony Edwards might seek a trade in a few years due to a stagnant roster, observes Chris Hine of The Star Tribune. Hine believes the deal gives Minnesota a longer window to contend for a title, which is what Edwards will expect when he’s in the prime of his career.
Third-year forward Josh Minott was one of the stars of Friday’s preseason opener with 22 points and eight rebounds in a win over the Lakers. Minott tells Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic that following a disappointing Summer League performance, he has become more relaxed by not focusing on results, which has given him a better outlook. “In my 21 years on this planet — about to be 22 — this is probably the most confident I’ve ever felt in my jump shot,” Minott said. “I feel like anytime the ball leaves my hands from beyond the arc, it’s going in.” Wolves staff members have been raving about Minott’s shooting since last season’s playoffs, tweets John Hollinger of The Athletic.
Patrick Reusse of The Star Tribune is concerned that the Wolves might have too much talent on their revamped roster to keep everyone happy. Coach Chris Finch traditionally uses a nine-man rotation, and he has nine veterans who were rotation members on their respective teams last season. That’s in addition to Minott, Luka Garza, Leonard Miller and first-round picks Rob Dillingham and Terrence Shannon.

Wolves Notes: Knicks Trade, Randle, DiVincenzo, Towns

October 3rd, 2024 at 5:51pm CST by Rory Maher

While long-term salary cap considerations played a factor in Minnesota’s blockbuster trade with New York, Timberwolves sources tell Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic that majority owner Glen Taylor was only willing to sign off on a deal involving Karl-Anthony Towns if the front office believed it would improve the team entering the 2024/25 season. Last season, the Wolves made the Western Conference finals for just the second time in franchise history, and Taylor had no interest in taking a step back.

“First and foremost, I think it’s extremely important to recognize that this is not a money deal,” head coach Chris Finch said. “Glen and our ownership was and is committed to paying large amounts of tax for this team to be highly competitive. That hasn’t changed. This deal in totality checks a lot of boxes. We think it’s a great basketball trade.”

Sources tell Krawczynski that Taylor reiterated throughout the summer he was willing to a foot a significant luxury tax bill and would rather have kept Towns — and the four years and $220MM left on his contract — than make the team worse. As Krawczysnki writes, Taylor is in an ongoing ownership dispute with minority stakeholders Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez, and it behooves both sides to keep the Wolves as competitive as possible entering arbitration in early November.

It has been reported multiple times that the Knicks have wanted Towns for at least a couple years. But the timing of the trade was surprising, considering the regular season begins in a few weeks and training camps are already underway.

Team and league sources tell Krawczynski that the Wolves didn’t have many other options for moving Towns, especially for quality players in return, making the Knicks’ offer –headlined by three-time All-Star Julius Randle — appealing. However, according to Krawczynski, the Wolves only accepted the trade when the Knicks included Donte DiVincenzo in place of Mitchell Robinson, who is out until December or January as he continues recovers from ankle surgery.

Krawczynski also suggests the Wolves had some concerns that if they struggled to open ’24/25 or Towns got hurt, they would’ve had even fewer suitable trade options for the four-time All-Star due to his recent injury history and super-max contract. Still, it was difficult to deal away one of the top players in franchise history, a former No. 1 overall pick who had strong ties within the organization and the community.

Here’s more on the Wolves:

Finch said Randle will be the starting power forward and lavished praise on his former colleague — he was an assistant with New Orleans during Randle’s lone season with the Pelicans in ’18/19. “Really, really enjoyed working with him,” Finch said, per Krawczynski. “Great pro. Loves being in the gym, comes in with a smile on his face every day. He’s hungry for feedback. Really pleasant.” For his part, Randle said he’s thrilled to reunite with Finch, calling him a “genius” who excelled with preparation, writes Jamal Collier of ESPN.
Randle could hit free agency next summer if he declines his $30.9MM player option for ’25/26. He said he was initially shocked by the trade but after getting a night’s sleep, he had a different perspective, calling the deal “a breath of fresh air,” according to Collier. “You want to be somewhere where you feel wanted. I feel wanted here,” Randle said Thursday. “At this point in my career, I’ve accomplished a lot of great things on an individual level, but I want to win a championship. This is a perfect opportunity to do that.”
Finch was also excited about the addition of DiVincenzo, saying he should be able to acclimate quickly, Krawczynski notes. “His basketball IQ and his ability to cut and move and play off the ball is something that we really need,” Finch said. “That’ll benefit us right away.”
A recent report suggested that DiVincenzo may not have been thrilled with a potential reduced role with the Knicks, but a source tells Stefan Bondy of The New York Post that DiVincenzo had “embraced” the idea of coming off the bench and didn’t want to leave New York. “When you look at the big picture, my mind wasn’t on what teams were interested in me. When I was in New York, I was fully there. I wanted to be there. And when this kind of picked up, I realized it was an opportunity. And when it became an actual thing, my mind just completely went straight to Minnesota,” DiVincenzo said. “And I immediately thanked everybody from my time in New York. There’s so much love there. But once I realized this is a real thing and actually happened, my mind transitioned to Minnesota. And I’m 100 percent here and excited.”
Towns recently sent out a tweet thanking the Wolves organization and the team’s fans.

Knicks Officially Acquire Karl-Anthony Towns In Three-Team Trade With Wolves, Hornets

October 2nd, 2024 at 1:56pm CST by Luke Adams

The Karl-Anthony Towns blockbuster involving the Knicks, Timberwolves, and Hornets is now official, according to press releases from each of the three teams involved in the deal.

Word first broke last Friday night that an agreement had been reached, with more details reported on Tuesday. The full terms of the trade are as follows:

Knicks acquire Towns and the draft rights to James Nnaji.
Timberwolves acquire Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo, Keita Bates-Diop, and the Pistons’ 2025 first-round pick (top-13 protected; from Knicks).
Hornets acquire DaQuan Jeffries (sign-and-trade), Charlie Brown Jr. (sign-and-trade), Duane Washington (sign-and-trade), either the Nuggets’ or Sixers’ 2025 second-round pick (whichever is least favorable; from Timberwolves), the Warriors’ 2026 second-round pick (from Knicks), the Knicks’ 2031 second-round pick, and cash ($7.2MM; from Knicks).

“We are beyond excited to welcome Karl-Anthony Towns to the New York Knicks family,” Knicks president of basketball operations Leon Rose said in a statement. “Karl-Anthony brings a skillset that is unique to the game of basketball. He possesses a blend of playmaking, shooting, rebounding and defending that in combination with his size allows him to compete at a level that is rare in this league. Karl-Anthony has demonstrated throughout his career to be a high caliber player and person on and off the court who will complement the type of team and culture we continue to build in New York.”

Minnesota waived camp invitee Jaedon LeDee in order to accommodate the one-for-three swap, while Charlotte cut guards Marcus Garrett and guard Caleb McConnell to make room on its roster for the three incoming players.

Both the Wolves and Hornets are now at their 21-man preseason limits, while the Knicks have five open spots on their 21-man squad. They’ll reportedly fill one of those spots by re-signing Chuma Okeke.

Our original report on the trade includes more details on the on-court implications of the move for the Knicks and Timberwolves. We also discussed how it will affect New York’s ability to fill out the rest of its regular season roster.

Here are a few more additional notes on the transaction:

Randle received his full 15% trade bonus as part of the transaction, confirms ESPN’s Bobby Marks (via Twitter). That bumps the forward’s cap hit for 2024/25 from $28,939,680 to $33,073,920. The cap charge for Randle’s ’25/26 player option ($30,935,520) remains unchanged, since the trade bonus doesn’t affect option years.
Towns also had a trade kicker in his contract, but it’s voided because he’s already earning his maximum salary, Marks adds (via Twitter).
The three players the Knicks signed-and-traded to the Hornets will each earn exactly $1 more than their respective minimum salaries, per Marks. That works out to $2,425,404 for Jeffries, $2,237,692 for Brown, and $2,162,607 for Washington. Teams aren’t permitted to aggregate multiple minimum-salary contracts for matching purposes in offseason trades, and since Bates-Diop is on a minimum deal, Jeffries, Brown, and Washington couldn’t be. Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link) has heard that the NBA “isn’t thrilled” about the way in which the Knicks circumvented that rule, but it’s technically legal.
The Hornets used their $7,983,000 room exception to accommodate those three incoming salaries, becoming the first team to take advantage of the new rule allowing clubs to use their non-taxpayer mid-level exception, room exception, or bi-annual exception to acquire a player via trade. Charlotte now has just $1,157,297 left on that exception.
The Timberwolves will create a $4,686,880 trade exception in the deal, which they’d be allowed to use this season despite being a second-apron team. Teams operating above either tax apron are prohibited from using trade exceptions that were generated during the previous season, but can use newly created TPEs.
Because they sent approximately $7.2MM to the Hornets in the deal, were responsible for paying Randle’s $4.13MM trade bonus, and will reportedly pay Partizan Belgrade an estimated $850K for Washington’s buyout, the Knicks are on the hook for more than $12MM in cash, separate from player salaries, as a result of the deal.

Hornets To Receive Three Second-Rounders, Three Players In Towns Blockbuster

October 1st, 2024 at 7:31pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Hornets are receiving three second-round picks along with DaQuan Jeffries, Charlie Brown Jr. and Duane Washington Jr. as the third team in the Knicks–Timberwolves blockbuster trade, Shams Charania, Jon Krawczynski and Fred Katz of The Athletic report (via Twitter). A pair of those second-rounders are coming from the Knicks, while the Timberwolves will provide the other one.

The Knicks, of course, are acquiring Karl-Anthony Towns in the trade, while Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo, Keita Bates-Diop and a protected Pistons first-round pick controlled by New York are headed to Minnesota.

The Knicks will also receive the rights to 2023 draft pick James Nnaji from Charlotte, Katz tweets.

Jeffries has appeared in a total of 64 NBA games for four different teams. He saw action in 17 games off the bench for New York last season.

Brown has appeared in NBA games for five organizations since entering the league in 2019/20. He played eight games for the Knicks last season.

Washington has played a total of 79 games for Indiana and Phoenix. Washington, who didn’t appear in an NBA game last season, signed a two-year contract with Serbia’s Partizan Belgrade in July.

ESPN’s Bobby Marks provides more details on Charlotte’s haul (Twitter link). Minnesota is shipping a 2025 second-rounder (the least favorable of Denver’s or Philadelphia’s picks). The Knicks are giving up a 2026 pick that Golden State owed them and their own 2031 second-rounder.

The trio of veteran players are involved in sign-and-trades and Charlotte will also collect a total of $7.2MM in cash from the Knicks, Marks notes. That’s the maximum amount of cash a team can trade in 2024/25, so New York won’t be permitted to sent out cash in any subsequent deals.

The cash Charlotte receives will offset the salaries of the three players, who will earn a combined $6.8MM, Marks adds (Twitter link). The Hornets are using their room exception to make those acquisitions, making them the first team to take advantage of new rules allowing teams to trade for players using the non-taxpayer mid-level, room, or bi-annual exception.

Partizan and Washington will agree to a buyout freeing him up for the sign-and-trade deal, but Charlotte plans to waive him, so he could re-sign with the Belgrade-based club, Ian Begley of SNY TV tweets.

Nnaji, the 31st pick of the 2023 draft, is a draft-and-stash prospect who struggled to get rotation minutes with Spanish powerhouse Barcelona in ’23/24. He’s playing for Spain’s Girona on loan from Barcelona this season.

As we outlined on Saturday when we discussed the cap implications of the trade for the Knicks, they’ll have just 12 players under contract once the deal is official and won’t have enough room under their hard cap to carry two more players on veteran minimum deals.

In all likelihood, they’ll carry a 13th man on a minimum-salary contract (possibly Landry Shamet) and will promote either Kevin McCullar or Ariel Hukporti to the standard roster. They’d also have the option of signing a draft-and-stash prospect as their 14th man, though most viable candidates for an NBA roster spot are under contract with teams elsewhere.

Timberwolves Notes: Edwards, CBA, Towns, Minott

September 30th, 2024 at 8:29pm CST by Tristan Tucker

The Timberwolves shook things up in a massive way just before training camp by trading away fan favorite and four-time All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns. Anthony Edwards has evolved into one of the league’s premier players since his league debut in 2020, and the trade signals the organization’s faith in him. Still, Edwards was surprised by the trade of one of his close friends, as detailed in a story by ESPN’s Myron Medcalf.

“I think everybody knows [Towns] is my brother,” Edwards said Monday. “So that definitely hurts, but you know, it’s a business, so I just have to roll with it.”

Top Wolves decision-makers couldn’t speak on the yet-to-be-finalized blockbuster, but expressed optimism in Edwards’ ability to continue bringing the franchise to glory. The Timberwolves finished with their second-best record in team history last season.

“We continue to challenge [Edwards] because we think he can be one of the best players ever and we don’t say that lightly,” team president Tim Connelly said. “And with that expectation comes tremendous responsibility.”

Edwards said he thinks Connelly is right.

We have more from the Timberwolves:

While Connelly couldn’t speak specifically on the Towns trade, he was candid about the significant impact of the CBA’s second tax apron, Medcalf writes. Both Towns’ $220MM+ deal and Edwards’ $244MM+ contract started this season. “I mean the new rules are … some of the consequences are unintended, quite frankly,” Connelly said. “I don’t know if anyone intended to make it this challenging to make moves, to make trades when you’re above certain aprons. But you gotta be smart, you gotta be lucky, you gotta hit on some of your draft picks and then I think you have to, as much as possible, build teams that can stay together for multiple years.“
By trading Towns, the Wolves are also betting that Naz Reid will continue to evolve after winning Sixth Man of the Year this past season, Chris Hine of The Star Tribune writes. Reid became the longest-tenured Wolves player once the move is official. Hine also lists other ways the move will impact Minnesota, taking a dive into how the team’s starters, flexibility, and depth will all be impacted.
Wolves head coach Chris Finch gave third-year forward Josh Minott high praise on Monday, according to Jace Frederick of Pioneer Press (Twitter link). Finch said Minott has been one of the best players in the building for the Timberwolves over the past six weeks and that he’s had an incredible summer. Minott hasn’t played much since entering the league in 2022, averaging just 4.0 minutes and making 47 appearances. However, he averaged 19.5 PPG and 6.7 RPG last season in the G League. Finch’s praise of Minott is significant because after acquiring three players in exchange for Towns, the Timberwolves will have 15 players on guaranteed salaries, with PJ Dozier on a partial guarantee. Minott could have been on the roster bubble for the Wolves, but Finch’s seal of approval suggests his spot isn’t in any immediate danger.

Northwest Notes: Blockbuster Trade, Clingan, Avdija, SGA, Holmgren

September 29th, 2024 at 5:27pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The three-team blockbuster deal that would send Karl-Anthony Towns to the Knicks and Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo to the Timberwolves is still on track but has not been completed, Ramona Shelburne of ESPN tweets.

The expectation is that the deal, which also includes the Hornets, will become official early this week, Shelburne adds. Thus, the players in the deal won’t be at their respective training camps when they open on Monday.

We have more from the Northwest Division:

With the Trail Blazers about to open camp, Sean Highkin of The Rose Garden Report explores the five biggest storylines heading into the season. That includes the learning curve for lottery pick Donovan Clingan, the backcourt rotation, and how offseason acquisition Deni Avdija will fit in.
In a similar theme, Rylan Stiles of Sports Illustrated takes a look at one question that each Thunder player must answer as they head into training camp as the Western Conference favorites. Some of the topics Stiles explores is whether Shai Gilgeous-Alexander can add a 3-point shot to round out his offensive game, whether Chet Holmgren will experience an offensive uptick and what role newcomer Isaiah Hartenstein will play.
In another Thunder-related story, Joel Lorenzi of The Oklahoman lists a number of potential starting lineups they could employ and the strengths of each of those combinations. He also looks at a number of combinations the coaching staff could use during the course of the game.

Northwest Notes: Towns, Westbrook, Jazz, Trail Blazers

September 28th, 2024 at 11:02pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Timberwolves were facing significant financial losses for the foreseeable future if they had kept the current roster together, league sources tell Brian Windhorst of ESPN. The need to unload Karl-Anthony Towns‘ contract is Minnesota’s primary motivation for agreeing to the trade that will send him to the Knicks.

Towns will earn $49.2MM this season as his four-year, $220MM extension kicks in. Windhorst points out that the front office gave him that deal in 2022 when it looked like he had established himself as the franchise cornerstone. That designation now belongs to Anthony Edwards, who increased the value of his own maximum-salary extension by $41MM by making the All-NBA team last season. Throw in Rudy Gobert, who will make $43.8MM this season and is almost certain to pick up his $46.7MM player option for 2025/26, and that’s already the core of a very expensive roster.

The financial uncertainties are accompanied by a dispute over who will ultimately own the team. Sources tell Windhorst that the group headed by Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez has become confident it will prevail in the arbitration hearings set to begin November 4. They have lined up more than $900MM in escrow, Windhorst adds, with the support of former Google CEO Eric Schmidt and ex-New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

Lore and Rodriguez plan to present more than $200MM in working capital, according to Windhorst’s sources, providing evidence that they can cover the final payment to current owner Glen Taylor and still handle the team’s projected deficits.

Windhorst points out that even if Lore and Rodriguez prevail in arbitration, they aren’t guaranteed to get the team. That will be decided in a vote by the NBA’s Board of Governors, many of whom may still be loyal to Taylor. Windhorst expects lawsuits to be filed no matter what the final decision is.

There’s more from the Northwest Division:

New Nuggets guard Russell Westbrook suggested to reporters that he was misused by the Clippers last season, per Bennett Durando of The Denver Post. “To be honest, it was unique,” Westbrook said. “They just didn’t put me in a position to make it unique. I was in a position where I was playing not my position. And being able to be here, and coach (Michael) Malone allowing me to be able to use my speed, use my transition skill to be able to make other guys better, makes the game easy for everybody surrounding me. That’s what I love to do best.” Malone has raved about Westbrook’s work ethic and the example he sets for his young teammates, Durando adds.
The Jazz were prepared for a major acquisition this summer, but they couldn’t find any suitable opportunities, according to Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune. “You guys have seen how things evolve in an offseason,” general manager Justin Zanik told reporters. “In this organization, we are extremely aggressive with pursuing any and all means necessary to make this a championship-caliber roster. When those opportunities come up, we’re ready for it. There weren’t any.”
The quality of Milwaukee’s picks toward the end of this decade will determine how much value the Trail Blazers got in exchange for Damian Lillard, Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian states on the one-year anniversary of the trade. Portland has swap rights for the Bucks‘ first-round selections in 2028 and 2030, and will receive the most and least favorable among their own pick, Boston’s, and Milwaukee’s in 2029.

Timberwolves Waive Chasson Randle

September 28th, 2024 at 4:22pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Timberwolves have parted ways with veteran guard Chasson Randle, the team announced in a press release.

Randle, 31, officially signed an Exhibit 10 contract with Minnesota on Friday, although the move had been rumored for several weeks. He’ll have an opportunity to earn a bonus worth up to $77.5K if he spends at least 60 days with the team’s G League affiliate in Iowa.

Randle played for five teams in four NBA seasons before heading overseas in 2021. He spent last season with AEK Athens in the Greek Basketball League, averaging 8.8 points, 2.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 21 games.

Waiving Randle leaves the Wolves with 20 players, one short of the NBA’s offseason roster limit. They’re reportedly taking back three players from New York in the Karl-Anthony Towns trade, so at least one more spot will have to be opened before that deal can be completed.

More Notes On Blockbuster Knicks/Timberwolves Trade

September 28th, 2024 at 12:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Before news of the Karl-Anthony Towns trade broke on social media on Friday night, Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly visited Towns at his Minnesota home to let him know that he was being traded to the Knicks, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic.

As Krawczynski details, the fact that the Wolves moved off one of their highest-paid players didn’t come as a total surprise, given the team’s high payroll in 2024/25 and beyond, but the timing of the move was “an absolute thunderbolt that no one saw coming” after the team spent the offseason lauding its roster continuity and chemistry.

According to Krawczynski, the Wolves had an increasingly difficult time envisioning a scenario in which they were able to keep their existing roster intact beyond the 2024/25 season. Sources tell The Athletic that if Towns had stayed in Minnesota long-term, it likely would’ve meant parting with fan favorite Naz Reid and Nickeil Alexander-Walker.

Getting two rotation players – Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo – in exchange for one will create more flexibility going forward for the Wolves, especially since Randle has the opportunity to reach free agency in 2025. While it doesn’t sound like there are any immediate plans to flip the newcomers – Krawczynski says Randle has “plenty of advocates” in Minnesota and the team has long had interest in DiVincenzo – their contracts should make them easier to move on the trade market, if necessary, than Towns was with four years and $220MM left on his deal, Krawczynski observes.

Here’s more on the Towns trade, which is still in the process of being finalized:

The Knicks repeatedly called the Timberwolves over the years to express their interest in Towns, but those discussions never really evolved into full-fledged negotiations until now, says Fred Katz of The Athletic.
While the “Villanova Knicks” won’t get to take the court this season – with DiVincenzo sent to Minnesota before Mikal Bridges has played his first game as a Knick – the club is excited about the way that Towns will complement Bridges, Jalen Brunson, and OG Anunoby, league sources tell The Athletic. Katz adds that Towns’ plus-minus numbers helped convince the Knicks to roll the dice on him, as the Wolves have consistently been better with him on the court throughout his career.
There’s not expected to be any lingering tension between Towns and former Wolves head coach Tom Thibodeau. Towns has publicly spoken about harboring no ill feelings toward Thibodeau after their up-and-down time together in Minnesota from 2016-19, and a source close to the Knicks’ head coach says he feels the same way, per Katz. “If a guy can play,” that source said, “Thibs wants him.”
Although Towns and Randle have seven All-Star nods between them, both stars come with their share of question marks related to their injury histories, contract situations, and defense. Michael Pina of The Ringer considers the risk that both sides are taking on by making this move and questions the timing of the agreement.
In his analysis of the deal, John Hollinger of The Athletic notes that the Knicks addressed their center problem by acquiring Towns, but run the risk of creating “enough other issues that the cure may be worse than the disease.” Specifically, the deal will hurt the team’s wing depth and create major long-term cap challenges, Hollinger writes.
James L. Edwards III of The Athletic also isn’t 100% sure that the trade will make the Knicks a better team. Edwards acknowledges that Towns is the best player in the deal, but points out that he won’t address the team’s two biggest short-term needs: frontcourt defense and secondary play-making.
ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, Chris Herring, and Bobby Marks take a look at what the move means for both the Knicks and the Timberwolves and explore the biggest remaining question marks related to the deal.

Knicks Closing In On Trade For Karl-Anthony Towns

September 27th, 2024 at 9:25pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Timberwolves and Knicks are close to completing a blockbuster deal that will send Karl-Anthony Towns to New York.

The Knicks’ package will center around Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania and Jon Krawczynski. Krawczynski adds (via Twitter) that Keita Bates-Diop is headed from New York to Minnesota too.

Minnesota is also receiving the first-round pick that the Pistons owe the Knicks, according to Steve Popper of Newsday (Twitter link). That first-rounder is for 2025, but is top-13 protected. If it lands in its protected range, it would roll over to 2026 (top-11 protected) and 2027 (top-nine protected) before turning into a ’27 second-round pick.

The Knicks are sending DaQuan Jeffries and draft compensation to the Hornets to help facilitate the deal, Charania adds (Twitter link). Charlotte will also acquire cash from New York, per Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer.

Jeffries’ new contract is expected to start around $3MM, tweets Ian Begley of SNY.tv. It will have to cover three seasons, but only the first must be guaranteed.

The parties are still working through the details, as the Knicks will need to more salary to make the trade legal, but talks intensified over the last 24 hours, ESPN’s Bobby Marks tweets. It’s a stunning turn of events right before the start of training camp. New York was already involved in a major deal this offseason, trading for the Nets’ Mikal Bridges.

The addition of Towns would give the Knicks more flexibility with their lineup but would come at a large long-term cost in terms of payroll. Towns’ monster four-year, $220MM super-max extension kicks in this season. He’s due to make $49,205,800 this season and his salary escalates over the life of the contract.

Randle has a $28,939,680 salary this season and holds a $30.9MM player option next offseason. DiVincenzo is in the second year of a four-year, $46.87MM contract, including a $11,445,000 salary this season.

Neither the Knicks nor the Timberwolves can take back more money than they send out, since both teams are operating above the $178.1MM first tax apron, cap expert Yossi Gozlan points out (Twitter link). The Wolves are currently over the second apron as well.

Randle also has a trade bonus worth $4.1MM that will be triggered as a result of the deal, according to Gozlan (Twitter link). Trade kickers can be waived partially or entirely to help accommodate a move, though there’s been no indication yet that the forward will do so.

Long-term salary cap implications would certainly factor into Minnesota’s decision, if the deal goes through. Moving off of Towns’ pricey contract will help the Wolves keep the rest of their core together and eventually extend key frontcourt pieces like Rudy Gobert and Naz Reid during a tumultuous time for team ownership. Towns has also suffered a number of injuries during his career, which could also be a factor in the Timberwolves’ thinking.

Towns will give the Knicks a dynamic frontcourt scoring option to complement All-Star guard Jalen Brunson. He could also fill the center spot, which is in flux with Mitchell Robinson sidelined by injury and Isaiah Hartenstein signing as a free agent with Oklahoma City, and slide over to the power forward position at times when Robinson returns. A league source tells Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (Twitter link) that the club views Towns as an ideal complement to its core of Brunson, Bridges, and OG Anunoby.

As Charania and Krawczynski write, Towns grew up as a Knicks fan near New York City and had long been on the team’s radar. The four-time All-Star is also a client at CAA, the former agency of current Knicks president of basketball operations Leon Rose. The Knicks contacted the Wolves about Towns repeatedly over the last two years, sources tell The Athletic, and “stepped up” their pursuit in recent days, tweets Chris Hine of The Star Tribune.

Still, Towns – who had been in Minnesota since being drafted first overall by the team in 2015, had been fiercely loyal to the Wolves over the year, sticking with the team through some challenging years and repeatedly professing a desire to remain with the organization for his entire career. He was “stunned” by the news of the trade, a source tells The Athletic.

It’s also worth noting that Towns and Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau had a somewhat strained relationship during their overlap in Minnesota from 2016-19, though Krawczynski says Towns has moved past that and holds “no ill feelings” toward Thibodeau.

Randle will replace Towns as the Timberwolves’ power forward, though Reid – a better long-distance shooter than Randle and a good fit next to Gobert – also figures to play a key role in filling the hole created by Towns’ departure.

Sources tell Ramona Shelburne of ESPN (Twitter link) that the Knicks and Randle – who spent the offseason recovering from shoulder surgery – hadn’t made any progress in contract extension negotiations, which made the club more inclined to move him. The Pistons, Hawks and Heat are among the other teams the Knicks talked to regarding potential Randle trades, Begley tweets.

DiVincenzo will provide Minnesota with a solid three-point shooting wing. He’s coming off a career year in which he averaged 15.1 points per game.

As Jake Fischer tweets, the Timberwolves targeted DiVincenzo when he was a free agent in 2023 and he reciprocated their interest at the time before choosing the Knicks. DiVincenzo’s inclusion in the deal was a sticking point for the Wolves, who became “very intrigued” once the Knicks were willing to put him on the table, says Begley (Twitter link).

According to Krawczynski, the Wolves believe the added flexibility the trade provides will put them in a better position to contend in the long-term and maximize Anthony Edwards‘ window.

Luke Adams contributed to this story.

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