The New York Knicks have a franchise-altering decision to make this summer.
To trade, or not to trade Karl-Anthony Towns, that is the question.
With a new report indicating that Knicks coaches and players were frustrated by KAT’s defense this year, the idea of Towns leaving New York after one season is bouncing around everywhere.
Towns’s offensive talent is substantial, though, and in KAT’s defense, the guy’s been to the Conference Finals in two consecutive seasons with two different teams.
Offensive ability aside, the Towns decision for New York’s brass is a financial one, with Towns under contract for the next three seasons at $53.1 million, $57 million, and $61 million, respectively (per Spotrac).
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That’s a ton of money, and proponents of trading Towns point to the valid truth that the Knicks won’t have enough money left over to build anything substantial around Towns and Brunson moving forward.
There are also doubts that a Towns-Brunson duo is championship-worthy, in the first place, based on their defensive shortcomings.
And since there’s no chance the Knicks are moving Brunson, Towns becomes the likely trade chip in all of this.
On Sunday, The Ringer’s Bill Simmons proposed an interesting solution for the Knicks that would allow them to cut ties with Towns while simultaneously reloading for another run in 2025-26. During a new episode of The Bill Simmons Podcast, Simmons said the Knicks could trade Towns to the Phoenix Suns for Kevin Durant.
“Towns for Durant,” Simmons said. “I think Durant has a year left, but you can extend him.”
“The salaries actually work as a one-for-one (trade). Towns, if you remember, has a whole friendship history with (Devin) Booker. They’ve known each other since they were kids. They have the same agent.”
“If you’re the Suns, you don’t have a lot of ways to get better … and Booker loves Towns, and I think they’re still buddies. Is that a way to get outta the Durant business?”
“And then if you’re the Knicks, you have this one-year run with Durant. You can talk yourself into Mitchell Robinson (playing) 30 minutes a game. You’re out of the Towns defense business. You’ve kind of sold high. You got out of (Julius) Randle, you got out of Towns with this big contract coming.”
Simmons’s proposal is an interesting one, although it’s probably more enticing for the Knicks than it is for the Suns.
Phoenix might feel that it can get a better package for KD than Towns, despite the latter player’s alleged strong relationship with Booker.
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