The New York Knicks may have just lost more than Game 3 against the Boston Celtics.
Karl-Anthony Towns suffered what appeared to be a left finger or hand injury during the first half of Saturday's 22-point beatdown at the hands of the reigning champs. Though he remained in the game, social media lip-reading experts believe he said "I broke it."
When asked about the injury afterward, KAT offered a cryptic response that should, quite frankly, terrify Knicks fans. "It is what it is," he told reporters. Things took a turn for the even more opaque when he was pressed about the issue further:
Karl-Anthony Towns was asked if he had a broken bone in his hand after the game
— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) May 10, 2025
“It is what it is,” he responded. “I'm gonna keep finding ways to play, so I ain't tripping.”
When asked if he underwent X-rays, he said, “I’ma let them tell you that.”
That seems...ominous.
Tom Thibodeau doesn't have any answers for the KAT injury
To be absolutely sure, nothing on this matter is official. Did Towns have X-rays? Did he not have X-rays? If he did have them, what are the results? Did he suffer a broken bone in his left hand? Or in one of his left fingers? If something is wrong, can he play through it, like he did for a chunk of Game 3? Or will it turn out that was, in fact, a mistake?
We do not have concrete answers to these questions. For what it's worth, though, Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau seemed to brush off concern when asked about it. "It's the playoffs, and people are gonna get hit," he told the media. "You've got to play through things. That's why you do it the entire season."
Tom Thibodeau was asked if he's concerned about Karl-Anthony Towns' hand:
— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) May 10, 2025
"It's the playoffs and people are gonna get hit. You've got to play through things. That's why you do it the entire season." pic.twitter.com/X5A2E1EDrs
This is the Thibsian equivalent of "Spray some Windex on it."
Granted, it may come as a source of comfort that he's not painting a bleaker picture. Plus, the prospective injury is to his non-shooting hand. (If you'll recall, Towns suffered an injury to the thumb on his shooting hand in late January, and then played through it.)
On the flip side, we can't necessarily read deeply into Thibs' postgame vantage point. This man would probably expect Towns to play if his hand was almost entirely severed from his wrist, remaining attached only by micro-threads of carpal bones, billowing like a human inflatable in the wind at a sketchy used car dealership.
The Knicks cannot afford to lose Karl-Anthony Towns
Towns' importance to the team largely goes without saying. Fans harp on his ups and downs because he's a human momentum gauge. When he's aggressive on offense, moving his feet, and making it to the right spots on defense, they are a far more dangerous team.
Losing him for any time, at all, would be catastrophic. But even if he follows Thibs' advice, sucks it up, and plays through it, New York isn't guaranteed to be much better off. Its margin for error against Boston is slim. Yes, the Knicks hold a 2-1 series edge. But it took consecutive historical comebacks to build it, and they just lost Game 3 by 23.
Full-strength KAT, or some version close to him, is the closest New York comes to an authentic No. 2 option. And even he isn't necessarily enough. As things stand, the Knicks suffer from a glaring lack of advantage creation outside of Jalen Brunson. OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, and Towns all take turns checking that box, but none of them are consistent enough plugs to that hole.
Look no further than the most recent loss as damning proof. Anunoby scored two points on six shots in over 30 minutes. Bridges shot 60 percent from the floor, but he only attempted 10 field goals. Towns jacked 18 shots, including five threes, but converted under 28 percent of his scoring opportunities.
The Knicks' offensive ecosystem is fragile (and uninspiring) enough as constructed. They rank 13th in points scored per 100 possessions among the 16 teams to crack the postseason—and are dead friggin' last among the eight squads that remain active.
This is all happening with a largely uninjured Towns. And if the Knicks are barely built to survive when he's close to full strength, they don't have a puncher's chance of emerging from the Celtics series without him—or even with a noticeably hobbled version of him.
Dan Favale is a Senior NBA Contributor for FanSided and National NBA Writer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Bluesky (@danfavale), and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, co-hosted by Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes.