Knicks, T-Wolves Updated Rosters, Salary Cap After Karl-Anthony Towns Trade

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The Minnesota Timberwolves are reportedly nearing a deal to send the cornerstone of their franchise over the past nine seasons to one of the best young teams in the Eastern Conference.

Per The Athletics Shams Charania, the Timberwolves are sending Karl-Anthony Towns to the New York Knicks in return for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo. The move puts a star alongside Jalen Brunson in New York while ending the Towns and Rudy Gobert experiment in Minnesota.

The Charlotte Hornets are also involved in the deal, with the Knicks sending salary, including DaQuan Jeffries, to Charlotte, per Charania.

With the blockbuster trade, here’s a look at each team’s updated rosters for the 2024-25 season.

New York Knicks Updated Depth Chart

PG: Jalen Brunson, Miles McBride, Cameron Payne, Tyler Kolek

SG: Mikal Bridges, Landry Shamet

SF: OG Anunoby, Josh Hart, Keita Bates-Diop, Chuma Okeke

PF: Pecious Achiuwa, Marcus Morris Sr.

C: Karl-Anthony Downs, Mitchell Robinson, Jericho Sims, Ariel Hukporti

Minnesota Timberwolves Updated Depth Chart

PG: Mike Conley, Rob Dillingham, Daishen Nix

SG: Anthony Edwards, Donte DiVincenzo, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Terrence Shannon Jr., Josh Minnott

SF: Jaden McDaniels, Joe Ingles, Leonard Miller

PF: Julius Randle, Naz Reid, PJ Dozier

C: Rudy Gobert, Luka Garza

Towns has a cap hit $49.205 million for the 2024-25 season, so the Knicks will be $53.230 million over the cap with his addition, sitting $9.874 million over the first apron but still $924,835 under the second apron, per Spotrac.

Randle has a cap hit of $28.939 million this season while DiVincenzo will account for $11.445 million against the cap, meaning Minnesota will now be $92.417 million over the cap, $21.166 million over the first apron and $10.367 million over the second apron, per Spotrac.

The Timberwolves’ two-big experiment with Gobert and Towns was a mess in 2022-23. They never really found a way to co-exist when they did play together.

It certainly hurt their ability to build chemistry because Towns missed 53 games due to a calf injury.

Things turned around dramatically last season, as the Timberwolves made the Western Conference Finals. Anthony Edwards emerged as a superstar during the playoff run. Still, a change of scenery for Towns could prove to be best for both sides.

Bringing Randle into a situation where he doesn’t have to be the focal point on offense should help his game. He’s best suited to be a high-level complimentary piece, which he can do for head coach Chris Finch.

Towns, the No. 1 overall pick in 2015, has been with the Wolves the entirety of his career. He experienced years of struggles in Minnesota before the team’s resurgence in recent years.

Towns has been a steady presence throughout his career, averaging 22.9 points, 10.8 rebounds and 1.3 blocks over his nine years in the league. He was named to his fourth All-Star Team in 2024, and he’ll look to put together another All-Star caliber season this year.

Randle joined the Knicks as a free agent in July 2019 when he signed a three-year, $63 million contract.

New York made the 2021 playoffs as the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference for the first time since 2012-13, but lost in the first round to the Atlanta Hawks.

Randle agreed to a four-year, $117 million extension with the Knicks before the start of the 2021-22 season that tied him to the team through 2024-25. The deal also includes a $29.5 million player option for the 2025-26 season.

Despite coming into the 2021-22 campaign with high expectations, the Knicks failed to live up to their hype. They finished 11th in the Eastern Conference with a 37-45 record.

Amid the Knicks’ ascent last season, culminating with them earning the No. 2 seed in the playoffs, Randle was sidelined for much of that run after suffering a dislocated shoulder during a Jan. 27 win over the Miami Heat.

Even though Randle initially tried to rehab the injury with the hope of returning at some point, the Knicks announced on April 4 he would undergo season-ending surgery.

New York’s success after Randle went down at least opened the door to him potentially being a trade candidate. The team might have made it to the Eastern Conference Finals, but bad injury luck for OG Anunoby, Mitchell Robinson, Josh Hart and Jalen Brunson caught up to them in a seven-game loss to the Indiana Pacers in the second round.

The Athletic’s Fred Katz reported on May 24 the Knicks weren’t trying to trade Randle, but their desire to add another star player next to Brunson could change those plans.

As of Aug. 3, Randle would have been eligible to sign a new deal with New York for as much as $181.5 million over four years.

That would have been a significant investment for a Knicks team that gave OG Anunoby a five-year, $212.5 million deal, acquired Mikal Bridges from the Brooklyn Nets for five first-round draft picks and a pick swap prior to the start of free agency and signed Brunson a four-year, $156.5 million extension in July that runs through 2027-28 and has a player option for the 2028-29 campaign.

Randle originally signed his extension with the Knicks when he was clearly the No. 1 option they had, but Brunson surpassed him after signing with New York as a free agent last summer.

The Kentucky alum has become a good scorer in this second stage of his career development and has averaged at least 19.5 points per game every season since 2018-19.

The Timberwolves also have the benefit of Randle being signed for one more guaranteed season to less than a maximum salary. It could turn into a two-year deal if he opts into his $32.4 million salary for the 2025-26 season.

Randle may not be the All-NBA talent he was during the 2020-21 season, but he’s still a very good player who can be a key contributor on a playoff team. The Wolves will take advantage of his skill set as they pursue a postseason spot.