The best shooting big man in the NBA, Karl-Anthony Towns, has been traded to the New York Knicks just as preseason kicks off. In return, the Minnesota Timberwolves will receive Julius Randle and Donte DiVicenzo. The best shooter of all the big men in the NBA currently, has been traded just as the preseason is about to start. Karl-Anthony Towns is no longer a MInnesota Timberwolf. He is a New York Knick now. The Power forward Julius Randle and the shooting guard Donte DiVicenzo is going to Minnesota.
It is not far-fetched at all to say that both teams got better after the trade. First of all Minnesota had to trade one of their big money earners (Edwards, McDaniels, Gobert and Towns). That is all because of the new CBA, teams can not have four max contracts on their books. Tim Connelly, president of basketball operations in Minnesota had to act and so he did. Besides Randle and DiVizenzo they will receive a first round pick as well.
Minnesota’s backcourt definitely got better with the arrival of Donte Di Vincenzo. Mike Conley, Anthony Edwards and Nickeil Alexander-Walker is one of the best backcourts in the west, if not the best. Their offence looked clunky at times with the twin towers of Towns and Gober in the middle. Randle is more of a natural power forward than Towns is and that could potentially make the offence more fluid.
At this point the Knicks are over the second apron so they are most likely to trade Mitchell Robinson before the season starts. With Robinson injured we’ll see where he will end up in the end. Towns and Brunson have the potential to be a better one two punch than Randle and Brunson was. The loss of Di Vicenzo is something that The New York Knicks will have to adapt to quickly. With the arrival of Towns and Mikal Bridges this off season it is obvious that the Knicks mean business this season. The ability to make life difficult for the Boston Celtics in the East is now higher and more likely for the Knicks. From a Knicks perspective that would be the main reason for this trade with the Wolves.
Speaking of the current NBA champions, The Boston Celtics. Boston will play two anticipated exhibition games in Abu Dhabi (first one October 4th). Denver Nuggets will be the opponent in both of these matches. The champions from the two past seasons will square off in the Arabian desert. This is a nice way of showcasing the NBA to the world, but in Denver’s case it is a 17 hour long flight in one direction and the travelling aspect will surely take a toll on the players.
Also, it remains to be seen if the two coaches Micheal Malone (The Denver Nuggets) and Joe Mazzulla (The Celtics) will take these two games 100% seriously. Malone was born in 1971 and Mazzulla in 1991. They are both originally from New York and actually went to the same high school, but 20 years apart. The name of the school is the Bishop Hendricken school. Malone is more of a traditional coach while Mazzulla loves to experiment and think outside of the box.