Mike Brown's vision for Karl-Anthony Towns involves much more of the big man's vision on the court than you may have previously thought. Through the New York Knicks' first eight playoff games, Towns has assisted on 49 baskets.
His average of 6.1 assists per game, against two different opponents to start the postseason, proves that Brown has officially added a game-changing wrinkle to his offense's approach. The Knicks have gotten plenty of criticism at the national level for building their team around a point guard considered "short" for an NBA superstar.
Having their 7-foot center make plays from his sweet spot at the top of the key has allowed Jalen Brunson to live at the rim. And it's looking like it could be exactly what helps fuel the NBA Finals run that pundits swore Brunson's teams wouldn't be capable of.
Towns is thriving in Domantas Sabonis-esque role under Brown
Throughout the entirety of the team's run to the Eastern Conference Finals last season, Towns racked up 24 assists. It resulted in the lowest postseason average of his career: just 1.3 assists per game.
The center had averaged at least 2.0 assists in each of his four playoff runs before then, with his 2023-24 mark of 2.6 standing alone as a career high. That's what makes the 6.1 assists he's dished out per game borderline incredible.
Towns struggled with turnovers throughout the regular season, with Brown sharing frustrations in postgame press conferences regarding the team's inability to make proper reads in a timely fashion out of the post.
Ever since the coach started positioning Towns at the top of the key, the exact spot from which he loves to fire away with his smooth 3-point shot, he's been finding cutters like OG Anunoby with ease. And he's turning the ball over way less often while he's at it.
Towns' assist-to-turnover ratio over his first five playoff runs, from 2018-2025, was 0.81 according to Basketball University. That pales in comparison to the 1.96 figure he's working with through the first eight games of 2026's playoffs.
How far can the Knicks ride Towns' playmaking prowess?
Brown was glad to tell reporters throughout the season that any improvement he'd like to see from his group starts with him.
The coach wasn't above admitting late in the season, once Towns and Brunson found league-leading success in the pick-and-roll, that some of their offensive prowess was the result of him adjusting to his players (and not the other way around) per ClutchPoints.
The result of their season's worth of awkward quotes and offensive development was worth the wait. Towns' 20-point, 10-rebound, seven-assist performance against the 76ers in Game 2 was proof of it.
The big man extended his streak of consecutive playoff performances with at least 10 points, five rebounds, and five assists.
Wednesday night was his fifth-straight game to meet those qualifications. It left him behind only Walt "Clyde" Frazier's six such games, according to NY Knicks Stats on Twitter.
If Towns keeps seeing through Brown's vision for the Knicks' offense, it might be hard to tell which team – other than the reigning champions – will be able to deal with the group's proficiency on both sides of the court.
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