The New York Knicks may have brought in the best player from their three-team blockbuster trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Charlotte Hornets in four-time All-Star center/power forward Karl-Anthony Towns, but the club has taken some heat for maximizing its future draft equity on its current roster.

In exchange, Minnesota brought in three-time All-Star power forward Julius Randle, versatile shooting guard Donte DiVincenzo, forward Keita Bates-Diop and a future first-round draft pick.

Read more: Knicks Trading for Karl-Anthony Towns in Shocking Blockbuster Deal

The Knicks eventually incorporated a third team, the Charlotte Hornets, into the agreement. When the dust had settled, New York had brought in Towns and the draft rights to international center James Nnaji, while the Timberwolves had added Randle, DiVincenzo, Bates-Diop, and a top-13 protected Detroit Pistons Pistons’ 2025 first-round pick.

Charlotte, for its part, added ex-Knicks shooting guards DaQuan Jeffries, Charlie Brown Jr., and Duane Washington in sign-and-trade deals, a 2025 second-rounder from the Timberwolves (via the Denver Nuggets or Philadelphia 76ers), a 2026 Golden State Warriors second-round pick, a 2031 New York second-round pick, and $7.2 million in cash from the Knicks.

Both the Knicks and Timberwolves finished with top-3 seeds in their respective conferences last year. New York was the East’s No. 2 seed with a 50-32 record and pushed the Indiana Pacers to seven games in an injury-plagued semifinal series. Minnesota nabbed the West’s No. 3 seed with a stellar 56-26 finish, advancing to the Western Conference Finals.

Towns, Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert, and Sixth Man of the Year Naz Reid combined to create a formidable front line that held firm through two stellar playoff series, but looked immobile and out-of-sorts against the faster, springier Dallas Mavericks’ big men in the Conference Finals. Towns owed $220.4 million across the next four seasons and looked particularly helpless in that brisk five-game series.

“I was kind of surprised over the last week at how many executives I talked to who felt like the Timberwolves won this trade, which is not something that you would expect to hear when most people would agree the best player went to the Knicks,” Windhorst noted.

Randle has had a solid career, but he lacks the superlative stretch big potential of Towns, one of the most elite shooters in the game at any position. Last season, the 7-foot Kentucky product averaged 21.8 points on .504/.416/.873 shooting splits, 8.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 0.7 steals and 0.7 blocks per bout. Towns’ 3-point output came on 5.3 long range tries.

“But I think what they are reacting to is… the way the Wolves were able to re-balance their roster in this trade, get Julius Randle, get DiVincenzo who helps them off the bench, give Rob Dillingham – their lottery pick — some time where he’s not maybe needed as much out of the gate with this, and also reduce their long-term payroll for a guy in Karl Towns — who had a really big contract,” Windhorst said.

DiVincenzo is a solid two-way player who has proved helpful on several deep playoff clubs, including the Milwaukee Bucks, Golden State Warriors, and Knicks. The Timberwolves traded for the draft rights to rookie guard Dillingham, the No. 8 pick out of Kentucky, from the San Antonio Spurs. Randle brings supplemental playmaking to bear that Towns did not, though he may not give the team the kind of shooting Towns supplied.

“And so the big thing will be: what is Julius Randle’s role while playing alongside Naz Reid and Rudy Gobert, and is he a long-term fit there?” Windhorst wondered. “Does he sign an extension later this year? Does he pick up his player option? But I think a lot of people feel like the Wolves improved themselves short- and medium-term in this deal.”

Randle has a $30.9 million player option for 2025-26, fairly reasonable for a two-time All-NBA honoree.

Read more: Knicks Stars React to Blockbuster Karl-Anthony Towns Trade

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