“Trading KAT should be priority #1 for the Knicks.” This tweet by NBA reporter Kevin O’Connor was just one amongst many that were circulating after the New York Knicks’ elimination. With the franchise having made its first Conference Finals in 25 years, only to lose to the Indiana Pacers, meant that someone had to take the blame. Towns was perfect, thanks to him being traded to the Knicks only in the last off-season, and his defensive abilities failing to keep Tyrese Haliburton at bay. Despite this, the Center still has some supporters out there, with one of them being more passionate than the other.
Former NBA player Austin Rivers spent a major segment of his new ‘Off Guard’ episode defending Karl-Anthony Towns. He kicked off his contribution on the topic by calling the criticism of Towns “not fair”, because “you guys wouldn’t even be in the f—— playoffs, let alone the Conference Finals, if you didn’t have Karl. I don’t know if you guys actually opened your m———— eyes. I’m actually frustrated and angry hearing that, cause I’ve seen that on the internet”.
Rivers then attacked the memes that made fun of Towns for being ‘zesty’. The former player used Towns’ performance in Games 5 and 6, along with the fact that he continued on despite limping in one of the games, to justify his reasoning. It didn’t make sense for him that “And then you lose Game 6, people are like ‘We need to trade Karl’. It’s the most delusional f—— thought I’ve ever heard”. Therefore, if the Knicks want to trade someone, then Rivers wants some other names to be on the potential list.
“If the Knicks go to the Conference Finals like three years in a row and lose with Karl, then you could be like, ‘We just can’t get over the hump’. We got to make changes. And it doesn’t have to be Karl, by the way. There’s like four other guys in the starting lineup that get paid big money to which you can point the finger at and be like, ‘He didn’t play as well as he should have.’,” said Rivers.
“I can name names. Karl ain’t one of them. Y’all want to point the finger at somebody, Knicks fans? Stop pointing it at the guy that took over a handful of games in the playoffs to win for you. Jalen Brunson and Karl, the last two guys you need to be pointing a m———— finger at!” Whew! That’s for sure a lot of F bombs.
Jan 8, 2025; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) reacts during the second quarter against the Toronto Raptors at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
But, from only looking at stats, you would think that Towns played well in the Knicks-Pacers series. After all, he averaged 24.8 points, 12.2 rebounds, and 1.8 assists in 6 games. However, one thing that is known about the Indiana Pacers is that their players are fast-paced.
In Game 2, Indiana was reportedly “hunting Towns on defense” during the 2nd half, attempting to put him in pick-and-roll mismatches against Tyrese Haliburton. The issue did not get resolved by Game 6. After all, Towns’ pick-and-roll defense gave Tyrese Haliburton far too much space by staying back. Therefore, when Haliburton scored 31, 32, and 21 points in Games 1, 3, and 6, people knew who to blame.
Despite everything that happened, it is important to remember that Towns was an All-Star starter in the East. He earned third-team All-NBA honors after averaging 24.4 points, 12.8 rebounds, and 3.1 assists in 72 games during the regular season. His contribution in getting the Knicks to the playoffs cannot be underestimated. Very few would know this better than Austin Rivers, who served as Towns’ teammate in his final NBA season.
No matter how passionate Rivers can get, though, no one can stop Karl-Anthony Towns’ trade if the front office makes up its mind. Furthermore, it does not help that a potential trade option has popped up less than 3 days after the Knicks’ elimination.
Will Karl-Anthony Towns be traded to the Orlando Magic?
A few days ago, an interesting report by NBA journalist Bailey Bassett started making waves. According to him, Towns was “streaky” offensively, was limited defensively, and the pairing alongside Jalen Brunson did not prove too effective for the majority of the postseason. Therefore, he endorsed the idea of a trade, and one that would take Towns out of town, but keep him in the same conference.
This led to him proposing that Karl-Anthony Towns be traded to the Orlando Magic. Along with including Tyler Kolek and Ariel Hukporti as part of the proposal, too, the Knicks can receive in return a bundle containing Jonathan Isaac, Wendell Carter Jr., Cole Anthony, Jett Howard, Mo Wagner, a 2025 first-round pick No. 16, and a 2027 first-round pick.
The Orlando Magic would certainly be tempted to consider such a proposal. After all, their offense is anchored by Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner, but the backcourt and frontcourt can reportedly see some serious offensive improvements. If there is one thing the Magic squad is not known for, it is being a reliable threat from beyond the arc. Towns shot 42% from the perimeter in his last season, marking his career’s 2nd-highest record. Adding him to a lineup with Banchero and Wagner gives the Magic floor spacing options they haven’t had and a legitimate third option.
The Magic need an offensive upgrade. How about Karl-Anthony Towns?https://t.co/IQPPixE7tA
— Magic Nation (@MagicNationCP) June 1, 2025
Furthermore, it helps that, if nothing else, at least the Orlando Magic are in a good position from a financial standpoint. The team’s front office spent the 2nd least on salaries in the recent tournament, forking over only $150.359 million. Therefore, they could certainly hope to cover the 4-year, $220.4 million designated veteran extension contract that Towns currently holds.
At the same time, it seems unlikely that the Knicks would trade Karl-Anthony Towns just a year after adding him. The Knicks made it to the Eastern Conference Finals, and that is no joke. On top of that, the proposed trade does not give the Knicks enough high-end rotation talent. What would be the point of trading Towns if the Knicks end up in a worse situation?
In the end, it all depends on the direction the Knicks choose to take. If they do trade, we can expect the next Austin Rivers episode to be full of rants with a lot more F bombs to go along!
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