When you think of thriving duos on the New York Knicks, the first one that rings a bell would be Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns. The next might be Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby, or podcast co-hosts Brunson and Josh Hart. However, a pairing taking the league by storm is Towns and Jose Alvarado. How so? Well, since the deadline (but before the OKC matchup), they had the highest net rating of any two-man lineup across the association.
In detail, through their first 113 minutes, Alvarado and Towns had posted a net rating of 36.5.
These numbers are a testament to the fact that they complement each other to a T. Alvarado and Towns both score, make plays, stay active defensively, and hustle. That leaves Knick fans hopeful that this combination gets maximized throughout the rest of the season.
The Alvarado-Towns duo is one the Knicks did not know they needed
The reason Jose Alvarado and Karl-Anthony Towns have such a strong connection is because of the veteran guard’s strengths: he is a sneaky pest who will creep up and force a turnover, while also delivering extremely contagious energy that everyone cannot help but feed on.​
Additionally, Alvarado is an excellent leader, something you cannot teach, and something he developed during his tenure with the New Orleans Pelicans. The perfect example occurred during Sunday’s win, when he was caught motivating Towns offensively with an uplifting reminder that the big man was too much for the San Antonio Spurs to handle.
Jose Alvarado to KAT: "THEY CAN'T GUARD YOU"
— The Knicks Recap (@TheKnicksRecap) March 1, 2026
Alvarado literally lifting this team up in everyway he can. What an amazing addition to the team!
To no surprise, it worked. Towns had one of his best defensive performances of the season when matched up with one of the toughest covers in NBA history in Victor Wembanyama, and maybe some of the credit should go to Alvarado for boosting his confidence.
Moving forward, the strategy for head coach Mike Brown must be to throw these two in any lineup that makes sense. By simply allowing Alvarado to set up Towns for momentum-shifting plays, the Knicks can realize how much easier it is to win.
There is certainly no stopping them in the regular season, as neither is a real liability before the game slows down in the postseason. They can both shoot and defend, even if Alvarado has a size disadvantage being 6 feet tall. In the playoffs, where the pace is different and the pressure is higher, they should still be able to get the job done.