Karl-Anthony Towns Traded to New York (Official Discussion Thread)

[younggunsmn]

For the record, it initially looked like they cut $8.8 mil in payroll, but that number will be less, because they aren’t including the Randle 15% Trade Kicker until it’s announced (roughly $4.5 mil) and the inclusion of Keita Bates Diop at $2.65. That would be a payroll savings of only about $1.83 mil.

For the record, to get under the lux, MIN would need to cut a little more than $33 mil more in payroll.

———

49.21. Towns

33.28. Randle 28.94 x 1.15
11.45. DiVincenzo
2.65. Diop
————-
47.38

$1.83 mil savings

AFAIK NYK pays the trade kicker on Randle, if they didnt get him to waive it which is a possibility.

Diop as a vet min will be a 2.087 mil charge against the cap.

[m2002brian]

I’m not sure I understand the Gugliotta reference either, maybe the Marbury trade. Trading our 2nd best player from a playoff team for two quality players.

Kg was our best player
Steph 2nd
Tommy G our 3rd

Ant is our best now
Rudy is the second best
KAT was our third best

(Offense isn’t the whole game)

We never traded Googs though, that’s the part that has me confused.
We traded for him, but he left as a free agent.

You’re right.
We lost him in FA
That really stung though. We got nothing. In fact Googs leaving, meant we signed … Wait for it … Joe Smith … and the rest was history. F You Tom.

At least we got something for KAT

[shrink]

For the record, it initially looked like they cut $8.8 mil in payroll, but that number will be less, because they aren’t including the Randle 15% Trade Kicker until it’s announced (roughly $4.5 mil) and the inclusion of Keita Bates Diop at $2.65. That would be a payroll savings of only about $1.83 mil.

For the record, to get under the lux, MIN would need to cut a little more than $33 mil more in payroll.

———

49.21. Towns

33.28. Randle 28.94 x 1.15
11.45. DiVincenzo
2.65. Diop
————-
47.38

$1.83 mil savings

AFAIK NYK pays the trade kicker on Randle, if they didnt get him to waive it which is a possibility.

Diop as a vet min will be a 2.087 mil charge against the cap.

I believe if a trading team pays the kicker, it’s cash and doesn’t reduce the cap hold of the new salary. But I’m not sure.

And I can’t get verification that Diop is a vet min deal. He signed 2 years, $5 mil, which would be near that range, but not that exact.

[younggunsmn]

For the record, it initially looked like they cut $8.8 mil in payroll, but that number will be less, because they aren’t including the Randle 15% Trade Kicker until it’s announced (roughly $4.5 mil) and the inclusion of Keita Bates Diop at $2.65. That would be a payroll savings of only about $1.83 mil.

For the record, to get under the lux, MIN would need to cut a little more than $33 mil more in payroll.

———

49.21. Towns

33.28. Randle 28.94 x 1.15
11.45. DiVincenzo
2.65. Diop
————-
47.38

$1.83 mil savings

AFAIK NYK pays the trade kicker on Randle, if they didnt get him to waive it which is a possibility.

Diop as a vet min will be a 2.087 mil charge against the cap.

I believe if a trading team pays the kicker, it’s cash and doesn’t reduce the cap hold of the new salary. But I’m not sure.

And I can’t get verification that Diop is a vet min deal. He signed 2 years, $5 mil, which would be near that range, but not that exact.

Yeah I don't know which team pays the tax on a trade kicker.

Bates-Diop signed a 2 year vet min with the suns last offseason with an option for this season, which he picked up in June.
Pretty sure he's a vet min. He was traded to the nets as part of the Royce Oneal deal and then to the Knicks in the Bridges deal.

But I guess since he signed a two year deal and not a one year deal, we don't get the small discount from the league on our tax bill.
That only comes with a one year deal.
Spotrac has him at 2.65 mil.
Same with Garza.

[minimus]

For the record, it initially looked like they cut $8.8 mil in payroll, but that number will be less, because they aren’t including the Randle 15% Trade Kicker until it’s announced (roughly $4.5 mil) and the inclusion of Keita Bates Diop at $2.65. That would be a payroll savings of only about $1.83 mil.

For the record, to get under the lux, MIN would need to cut a little more than $33 mil more in payroll.

———

49.21. Towns

33.28. Randle 28.94 x 1.15
11.45. DiVincenzo
2.65. Diop
————-
47.38

$1.83 mil savings

AFAIK NYK pays the trade kicker on Randle, if they didnt get him to waive it which is a possibility.

Diop as a vet min will be a 2.087 mil charge against the cap.

I believe if a trading team pays the kicker, it’s cash and doesn’t reduce the cap hold of the new salary. But I’m not sure.

And I can’t get verification that Diop is a vet min deal. He signed 2 years, $5 mil, which would be near that range, but not that exact.

I assume we waive Dozier, amirite?

[Sothron]

This trade reminded me so much of the Cavs traded Ron Harper for Danny Ferry and the team of the 90s never got a chance to take off.

My wife said the same thing. We are both in shock over this idiotic trade. If they had kept KAT for just one more year I honestly feel this team wins a championship. Now it is first round and out with some of the worst, if not the worst, spacing in the NBA.

[minimus]

Read on Twitter

Another one comparison with MEM Grit and Grind era. Randle = new ZBo? I love it!

[thinktank]

Read on Twitter

Another one comparison with MEM Grit and Grind era. Randle = new ZBo? I love it!

Why emulate an outdated team that never won a championship? Why is that a good thing?

[minimus]

Read on Twitter

Another one comparison with MEM Grit and Grind era. Randle = new ZBo? I love it!

Why emulate an outdated team that never won a championship? Why is that a good thing?

You emulate culture, not a team.

[Bernman]

Vecenie & his pod mates loved this for the Wolves (your POV starts 57 min in) but weren't convinced when it came to NY.

Watch on YouTube

It's similar to the reasons I was giving - Wolves fans don't seem to realize how good DiVincenzo was, you're being pessimistic about the 1st rd pick (it'll likely convey to Minny or someone else), & the bloated Towns contract made him a negative value long-term in this new apron climate. Also mitigate the Randle fit concerns, but pt out they may just move him the next yr.

[minimus]

Edwards just lost someone who might as well have been created in a lab as his ideal pick-and-roll partner. In four years as teammates, they developed a workable chemistry and dynamic that still had room to grow.

There was some sort of connection in 2021-22 season, but in my opinion Edwards and Towns did not developed special chemistry like other superstar duos do.

https://www.theringer.com/nba/2024/9/28/24256727/karl-anthony-towns-knicks-wolves-trade-julius-randle

[Note30]

Edwards just lost someone who might as well have been created in a lab as his ideal pick-and-roll partner. In four years as teammates, they developed a workable chemistry and dynamic that still had room to grow.

There was some sort of connection in 2021-22 season, but in my opinion Edwards and Towns did not developed special chemistry like other superstar duos do.

https://www.theringer.com/nba/2024/9/28/24256727/karl-anthony-towns-knicks-wolves-trade-julius-randle

That's definitely more Ants fault than Towns.

[minimus]

Edwards just lost someone who might as well have been created in a lab as his ideal pick-and-roll partner. In four years as teammates, they developed a workable chemistry and dynamic that still had room to grow.

There was some sort of connection in 2021-22 season, but in my opinion Edwards and Towns did not developed special chemistry like other superstar duos do.

https://www.theringer.com/nba/2024/9/28/24256727/karl-anthony-towns-knicks-wolves-trade-julius-randle

That's definitely more Ants fault than Towns.

Nope. Ant is slasher, slasher naturally are more comfortable passing to the corners, where Towns usually is not located. It is more about scheme.

[Guest84]

I’m hoping this pans out but I can’t see this as being the end game.

Personally, if you were going to trade Kat, I would’ve rather tried to grab Zion when his stock was lower a year or two ago and hope the risk pays off.

Even though I like him, idk if Naz is the future at the 4. Time will tell

[minimus]

I’m hoping this pans out but I can’t see this as being the end game.

Personally, if you were going to trade Kat, I would’ve rather tried to grab Zion when his stock was lower a year or two ago and hope the risk pays off.

Even though I like him, idk if Naz is the future at the 4. Time will tell

It is not the end, because TC will face major decisions going into offseason 2025:

- Gobert has PO in contract
- Reid has PO in contract
- Randle has PO in contract

ALL our three bigs will have POs. Plus NAW is UFA...

Meanwhile you cant win in West without two quality bigs:

- DAL have Gafford and Lively
- OKC have Chet and Hartenstein
- MEM have Jackson and Edey
- HOU have Sengun and Adams
- DEN have Jokic

[younggunsmn]

I kinda see similarities to adding Randle to when we added Sprewell in 2003, even though they play different positions.

Fiery veteran players with a slashing game who felt a little disrespected about their contracts and were/are essentially playing for a new one.
That worked out really well for one year with Sprewell, then blew up pretty spectacularly.
Randle has more left in the tank, but hopefully we at least get that really good one year from him.

[Note30]

There was some sort of connection in 2021-22 season, but in my opinion Edwards and Towns did not developed special chemistry like other superstar duos do.

https://www.theringer.com/nba/2024/9/28/24256727/karl-anthony-towns-knicks-wolves-trade-julius-randle

That's definitely more Ants fault than Towns.

Nope. Ant is slasher, slasher naturally are more comfortable passing to the corners, where Towns usually is not located. It is more about scheme.

.... Kobe was one of the best slashers in the league he still managed to get both Pau and Shaq significant assists.

If there wasn't a good scheme to utilize Towns then Ant should have spoken up especially considering he had the ball the majority of the time.

[m2002brian]

That's definitely more Ants fault than Towns.

Nope. Ant is slasher, slasher naturally are more comfortable passing to the corners, where Towns usually is not located. It is more about scheme.

.... Kobe was one of the best slashers in the league he still managed to get both Pau and Shaq significant assists.

If there wasn't a good scheme to utilize Towns then Ant should have spoken up especially considering he had the ball the majority of the time.

Have you considered the possibility that it was KAT who didn’t want the be put in the corners? Maybe KAT wanted to be KAT and play more like a guard. Possibly it was KAT who wanted to play more pick and pop.

We’ll never know. But the put it on Ant is absurd. Just as absurd as putting all on KAT or all on Finch.

Maybe sometimes **** just doesn’t work out and it’s as simple as that.

[coachEmily]

This trade reminded me so much of the Cavs traded Ron Harper for Danny Ferry and the team of the 90s never got a chance to take off.

My wife said the same thing. We are both in shock over this idiotic trade. If they had kept KAT for just one more year I honestly feel this team wins a championship. Now it is first round and out with some of the worst, if not the worst, spacing in the NBA.

But losing KAT won't hurt our defense. And the Knicks fans said they're worried because Randle gave them grit.
So our defense might be better with Randle, plus we've got DiV and he can defend well.
At worst i think our defense will be the same as last season, and our offense will definitely be better with DiV!
Even if we assume McDaniels and Reid won't improve (but they probably will improve!) i still think we've got a great chance at finishing #1 in the West.
And we've still got Gobert and Reid to defend Jokic, and we can keep them on the court for the whole time Jokic is on the court!

[m2002brian]

This trade reminded me so much of the Cavs traded Ron Harper for Danny Ferry and the team of the 90s never got a chance to take off.

My wife said the same thing. We are both in shock over this idiotic trade. If they had kept KAT for just one more year I honestly feel this team wins a championship. Now it is first round and out with some of the worst, if not the worst, spacing in the NBA.

But losing KAT won't hurt our defense. And the Knicks fans said they're worried because Randle gave them grit.
So our defense might be better with Randle, plus we've got DiV and he can defend well.
At worst i think our defense will be the same as last season, and our offense will definitely be better with DiV!
Even if we assume McDaniels and Reid won't improve (but they probably will improve!) i still think we've got a great chance at finishing #1 in the West.
And we've still got Gobert and Reid to defend Jokic, and we can keep them on the court for the whole time Jokic is on the court!

That’s the thing, and you make a great point. Scoring is easy (google Ant quote). We never had issues with points when KAT was injured. We had issues with depth. Getting guys to play defense is the key to a playoff team /potential championship team. That hasn’t changed, we actually got better.