The New York Knicks have completed the acquisition of Dominican Republic star Karl-Anthony Towns in a shocking three-team trade deal that involves the Charlotte Hornets and the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The 28-year-old, who was the first overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, will depart Minnesota after nine years playing at Target Center.
Welcome, Karl-Anthony Towns! pic.twitter.com/WzORYUmQ8k
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) October 2, 2024
The deal will reportedly see the Knicks send two second-round picks to the Hornets to complete the trade the Timberwolves. According to reports, Charlotte will also receive another second-round pick from the Timberwolves and DaQuan Jeffries, Charlie Brown and Duane Washington Jr. from the Knicks.
Meanwhile, in exchange for Towns, Minnesota gets Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo, Keita Bates-Diop and a first-round pick, with the Knicks also set to receive the draft rights to 2023 second-round pick James Nnaji from the Hornets.
Charlotte is also trading James Nnaji – the No. 31 pick in the 2023 NBA draft – to New York to finalize the trade, sources tell me, @JonKrawczynski and @FredKatz. https://t.co/7RFRIl7apN
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 2, 2024
“We are beyond excited to welcome Karl-Anthony Towns to the New York Knicks family,” team president Leon Rose said. “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.”
Towns’ a four-time All-Star and the 2016 Rookie of the Year award recipient, will team up with Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges in a star-studded Knicks roster as the Easter Conference team continue to push for their first Championship in 51 years.
Towns is currently averaging 22.9 points, 10.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game across 573 games in his career. He averaged 21.8ppg, 8.3rbg, 3.0apg in 62 games last season.
