The Minnesota Timberwolves made a blockbuster trade on Friday night , sending Karl-Anthony Towns to the New York Knicks. In return, they received Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo and a 2025 first round pick (top 13 protected).
Everyone was shocked. The media had no idea, fans were frozen in disbelief and insiders had not been tipped off. Even Karl-Anthony Towns, himself, was not made aware that something was afoot. He reacted on social media, just like the rest of us. Reports later confirmed he had absolutely no idea, until the trade happened.
In the hours since the trade took place, NBA pundits have been trying to make sense of what happened. Remember, last we heard regarding KAT trade rumors, the Minnesota Timberwolves planned to run it back for at least one more season, before re-evaluating their future.
Luxury tax has been part of the conversation, and we will get to that momentarily. But Taylor had assured Wolves fans and media members multiple times that money was not going to make a difference in how they constructed the roster in 2024-25.
Why the Minnesota Timberwolves traded Karl-Anthony Towns (official version)
This entire trade is weird, from a roster building standpoint. Karl-Anthony Towns’ former Kentucky teammate, Julius Randle, doesn’t necessarily fit what the Timberwolves want to do, either on defense or offense. Yet, he is supposed to be the reason for this trade? Come one.
Sure, Randle offers more of a power presence down low, on defense. But he’s shorter and probably a worse defender than Towns, overall.
On offense, if KAT often created spacing problems for the Wolves, specifically Anthony Edwards, then Julius Randle is only going to make that worse. And unlike Karl, if you force the 29-year-old Randle to the outside, like they often did Towns, he isn’t going to hit 40% of those three point shots (shot .311 3PT last season).
So… why make this move? The best Ramona Shelburne (ESPN) could come up with… Julius Randle played for Chris Finch once.
As of Saturday morning, Jon Krawczynski (The Athletic) is being told that this trade will allow the Minnesota Timberwolves to get more out of Anthony Edwards, going forward? More playing time for Naz Reid is also part of the organization’s official messaging. This might make less sense than Ramona’s explanation.
The Wolves made the deal to maximize Edwards’ window for the long haul, team sources told The Athletic. The Wolves wanted to make sure Edwards could be on a competitive playoff team for much longer than just the next two years and believe the flexibility this move provides will aid that pursuit. Dealing Towns also could help them retain Reid, a wildly popular player in Minnesota who could be a free agent next summer.
Jon Krawczynski – The Athletic
More likely: Glen Taylor didn’t understand how much the luxury tax bill would be…
Now that we know what propaganda the team is trying to sell, let’s talk about what makes the most sense. Because trading for Julius Randle, given the Wolves current makeup, does not make them a better team.
Sure, the Wolves might be a bit deeper, but you don’t trade off a top-25 NBA talent for more depth. Remember, when things don’t make sense, there’s usually a reason for it. In this case, that reason is so clear, it’s going to be impossible for Wolves media to hide.
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Glen Taylor’s mouth got way too big for his wallet. When he was talking tough to insiders about how money didn’t matter, the numbers coming out of those reports were always way low on their projected luxury tax payment.
We wrote articles citing insider reports that mentioned $25-$50 million. At that same time, websites like Spotrac were estimating a $100 million tax payment next season. At that point, my antennas went up. Then, there were rumors of a Rudy Gobert extension, to help ease that tax payment, something that is yet to come to fruition.
Common sense tells the story here
And now, with the season nearly upon us… that massive luxury tax number was starting to feel more and more real. Sure, it doesn’t have to be paid until the season ends, but trading your way out of it becomes much more difficult once the season starts next month. Krawczynski’s snooping behind the scenes has confirmed as much.
As the Timberwolves analyzed their cap situation and looked at the landscape across the league, it was getting harder and harder for the Wolves to see a scenario where they could keep this team intact beyond this season, team sources said.
…the Wolves had entered the dreaded second apron that brings with it luxury tax penalties and obstacles for team-building meant to strongly discourage teams from crossing that threshold for more than a couple of seasons.
In other words, Glen Taylor was probably pooping his depends this week. He may be the richest man in Minnesota, but $100 million, on top of the $200 million in player salaries is a lot of cash to front.
Last night’s move dropped their tax bill down to $77 million . Julius Randle costs the Timberwolves $20 million this year. And when the season is over, he can choose to become a free agent. If he plays well, an opt-out is almost guaranteed.
So, this trade allowed Minnesota to get out from under Karl-Anthony Towns recently signed max deal, which had 6 years left at an average of $55 million per season ($220 million guaranteed).
Related: NBA Insider Predicts Step Back for Minnesota Timberwolves
If you want the “why” to this deal, you may have to use your own common sense, over official reporting. I can’t imagine Glen Taylor is going to admit he got sticker shock, after talking so big this offseason . Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. KAT’s contract got to the point where he just wasn’t worth it.
Instead of keeping things together for one more year, and then hoping someone would take him next offseason, Connelly got it done now, while he had a willing trade partner, in the New York Knicks. And that made Glen happy, because his luxury tax dues immediately dropped.
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