CHARLESTON, S.C. — Karl-Anthony Towns bid farewell to the Timberwolves organization and Minnesota area in a social media post Wednesday, minutes after his trade to the New York Knicks became official and paved the way for him to join his new teammates in training camp.
“To the Timberwolves Family: Nine years ago, I arrived in Minnesota as a young man with a dream. Little did I know that this place would become my home, and its people would become my family. Your love, support, and unwavering loyalty have fueled my journey and inspired me to be the best player I could be,” the four-time All-Star wrote on X, alongside an accompanying video. “You’ll always hold a special place in my heart. Thank you for everything.”
With the three-team blockbuster trade among the Wolves, Knicks and Charlotte Hornets finally complete, Towns can now begin working with his New York teammates, while two-time All-NBA forward Julius Randle and guard Donte DiVincenzo, the other players in the deal, can begin playing with Minnesota. Charlotte acquired a couple of future second-round picks for stepping in to make the deal work financially.
Towns was photographed earlier this week wearing a backward Knicks cap at the team’s practice facility in suburban New York. He is expected to speak with the media in Charleston, where the Knicks are holding training camp, on Thursday for the first time since the trade.
The Knicks had been somewhat muted on the subject of Towns earlier in the week with the trade being incomplete. But slowly they’ve been saying more about the different ways he figures to open up the team’s offense with his floor-spacing ability as a sharpshooting big man.
Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau, who previously coached Towns in Minnesota, suggested his club could build on last season’s top-10 offense by playing more five-out basketball this season.
And Knicks captain Jalen Brunson acknowledged that he’d begun pondering how the move could change his plan of attack with opposing clubs.
“Yeah, I’ve thought about it,” Brunson said of the potential for him and Towns to wreak havoc as a duo in pick-and-rolls. “Whenever you add shooting, it opens things up. It adds another weapon and another way for us to exploit defenses.”
The Wolves and Knicks, who each finished with 50-plus wins last season, are slated to play one another in their preseason finale at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 13.