All Boarded up in New York
After being acquired by the Knicks in the offseason in a trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Karl-Anthony Towns has returned to his old ways after coming to New York. Having been dealt for a package surrounding Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo, there was a lot of pressure on Towns in his first season with New York. With 20 games complete for the Knicks this season, Towns is looking better than ever, and Knicks fans have head coach Tom Thibodeau to thank. Assuming he can keep up his increase in production as the season continues, the Knicks will not only be winners of the trade, but they’ll also have their sights set on an Eastern Conference Finals appearance.
Karl-Anthony Towns over the past five seasons in Minnesota has been labeled by many as one of the only seven-footers in the league who cannot rebound. Towns averaged ten rebounds per game in two of those five seasons, but since Rudy Gobert was acquired by the Timberwolves, Towns saw his numbers go down even further due to a position change. This change from center to power forward saw an increase in shooting behind the arc and a decrease in efficiency. Timberwolves fans griped in the postseason watching Towns miss from three-point range, rather than playing in the paint. Now, having moved back to the center position, Karl-Anthony Towns is leading the entire association in rebounds per game at 13.1 boards per contest. Although this is surprising, it really shouldn’t be. In the three seasons with coach Tom Thibodeau as a member of the Timberwolves, Towns averaged over 12 rebounds per game each year. In six seasons without Thibodeau, Towns has never averaged even eleven rebounds, including two seasons with under nine per game. Now that they both have been reunited as a player-coach duo in New York for the first time since the 2018-19 season, Towns is picking up right where he left off. Rebounding isn’t all, Towns is also attempting fewer three-pointers but making them at a higher percentage. His 5.2 attempted three-pointers per game is his second-lowest total since 2020 and his three-point percentage of 45.2 is the highest it has been in his entire career. Furthermore, being surrounded with many more options on the Knicks, Towns is playing at ease offensively and as a result is averaging 25.1 points per game, his highest total since the 2019-2020 season.
In a modern NBA that embraces three-point shooting and often discourages playing inside the paint, Towns, and Thibodeau are proving that sometimes less is more. Especially on a talented team like the Knicks, Thibodeau can afford to have Towns attempt fewer three-pointers in exchange for more efficiency on the glass. The great scoring ability of Jalen Brunson deserves a lot of credit, as well as tenacious role players like Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart. This depth gives Towns an affordance not to play as the number one or two option every night and makes room for his teammates to shine on occasion. Currently, 13-8, including wins in eight of their last ten games, placing fourth in the Eastern Conference, Towns, and the Knicks will look to take down the Charlotte Hornets tonight in order to earn their fourth straight victory.
