Knicks end Julius Randle era sending him, Donte DiVincezo to Timberwolves for All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns: reports

NEW YORK — The Julius Randle era at Madison Square Garden has come to an end, and for north New Jersey native Karl-Anthony Towns, homecoming is here early.

The Knicks traded Randle, a three-time All-Star, Donte DiVincenzo, the franchise’s all-time single-season 3-point leader, and a future first-round pick to the Timberwolves in exchange for Towns, one of the league’s premier centers, late Friday night.

In order to facilitate the trade, the Knicks sent DaQuan Jeffries and draft compensation to the Charlotte Hornets, according to The Athletic.

Towns reacted to the news on X, formerly known as Twitter, with a simple “…”

How we got here

Randle signed with the Knicks in the summer of 2019 and helped the franchise snap a seven-year playoff drought with a 2021 postseason appearance.

He struggled, however, through five first-round playoff games, averaging 18 points on 29.8% shooting from the field in a gentleman’s sweep at the hands of the Atlanta Hawks, later chalking his shooting woes up to it being his first time in the playoffs.

The Knicks signed Jalen Brunson two summers later and made back-to-back second-round playoff appearances with a limited or unavailable Randle: a second-round loss to the Miami Heat with Randle playing through a left ankle sprain in 2023, and a Game 7 loss in the second round against the Indiana Pacers last season, this time without Randle, whose season ended in late January courtesy of a dislocated right shoulder.

And while Randle’s regular-season stats put him on par with the NBA’s elite (only Denver’s Nikola Jokic, Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid and Dallas’ Luka Doncic also averaged at least 24 points, nine rebounds and five assists per game last season), reliability in the playoffs remained a question mark.

All these factors played a role when it was time to agree to a contract extension with Randle, who became eligible for a four-year, $181.5 million deal in early August. When an extension never materialized, the Knicks would have had to either trade Randle by the Feb. 6 deadline or risk him leaving for nothing as an unrestricted free agent next summer.

Yet all the while, the Knicks had been keeping tabs on Towns, one of Leon Rose’s clients as a mega player agent at CAA before taking the job as president of basketball operations at Madison Square Garden in 2020.

Rose has dramatically re-shaped the Knicks roster since taking the helm. This offseason alone, he re-signed OG Anunoby to the richest contract in franchise history, traded Bojan Bogdanovic and five first-round picks for Mikal Bridges, and signed Brunson to a four-year, $156.5 million contract extension, a steep discount for a first-time All-Star and first-time All-NBA selection at the peak of his career.

Towns a perfect fit for new-look Knicks

Towns averaged 21 points, 8.3 rebounds and three assists per game in Minnesota last season, but he played many of those minutes at the four alongside seven-footer and four-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert.

In New York, especially with Mitchell Robinson recovering from injury through the first two to three months of the regular season, Towns will give the Knicks something they’ve never had under head coach Tom Thibodeau: a floor-spacing five who can also protect the rim and defend multiple positions.

Towns and Thibodeau reunite after a failed title run with Jimmy Butler in Minnesota from 2016-19. Though Thibodeau’s tenure with the Timberwolves ended in dramatic fashion, Towns said he and Thibodeau are now on good terms.

“I ain’t got no problem with Thibs, we’ve been squashed out,” Towns told NJ.com last October. “I still look at Thibs as one of the best X’s and O’s guys I’ve been ever able to play for. He’s a winner, he’s a coach that breeds winning and I got nothing but respect for him.”

Towns shot 41.6% on more than five 3-point attempts per game last season with the Timberwolves. He then found a new gear to his game with the Timberwolves down, 0-3, in the Western Conference finals to the Dallas Mavericks and averaged 26.5 points through Games 4 and 5 in an attempt to stave off elimination.

Randle and DiVincenzo join a championship-contending Timberwolves team led by Anthony Edwards with Gobert patrolling the paint and cleaning the glass.

And with the Knicks’ new-look roster, Towns can play the five, Anunoby the four, Bridges the three and Brunson the one, though DiVincenzo’s inclusion in the deal could mean Josh Hart moves into the starting lineup for rebounding, play-making and pace.

Other Knicks on the roster following the deal include Robinson, Miles McBride, Precious Achiuwa, Jericho Sims, Cameron Payne, Keita Bates-Diop and rookies Pacome Dadiet and Tyler Kolek, with Marcus Morris Sr., Landry Shamet and Chuma Okeke on non-guaranteed training camp deals.

The Knicks will hold media day on Monday and will begin training camp in Charleston, S.C., on Tuesday.