The continued absence of a Karl-Anthony Towns extension already has ESPN’s Shams Charania hinting that his name could circulate in trade rumors this season. Yet, while this would align with how the New York Knicks usually operate under team president Leon Rose, we already have proof it’s not going to happen.
That proof’s name is Mitchell Robinson.
The Knicks knew that their former backup center was headed toward unrestricted free agency this past summer. Even with his injury history, they also knew that he would be in demand. Size and offensive rebounding are treasures in the possession-battle era. Finally, they knew this demand would lead to his departure as they continued to sidestep the second apron.
And you know what? The Knicks kept Robinson past the trade deadline anyway. And not only did they keep him, but they never appeared to entertain moving him.
New York is now going to follow the same blueprint with Towns.
The Knicks can’t afford to trade Towns anyway
Keeping KAT off the trade market if he doesn’t sign an extension isn’t just a decision rooted in the Knicks’ most recent logic. It’s a necessity.
You can envision a scenario in which the team ships out Deuce McBride ahead of free agency. New York is teeming with guards, and on any given night, he ranges from its fifth- to eighth-most important player.
There is no scenario in which the Knicks can trade Towns, and avoid serious regression. Seven-footers who drill threes, bust out bruising drives, and facilitate the offense don’t grow on trees. And KAT stands out even by those standards. He is currently the closest thing to a Victor Wembanyama foil the NBA has.
It’d be a different story if the Knicks weren’t trying to contend for a title, let alone defend a championship they just won. But they are. There is no way they genuinely do that without Towns.
KAT is less of a flight risk without an extension
Mimicking how the Knicks handled the Robinson situation is also easier in this case. Towns will have plenty of suitors if he reaches free agency, but he’s actually less likely to leave than his former second-in-command.
The Knicks let Robinson walk for mid-level-exception money. They aren’t going to do that with Towns. They have already gone up to $200 million over four years. The number of teams that can meaningfully beat that offer next summer isn’t especially long, and it will only shorten as potential suitors make other moves between now and the 2027 offseason.
Even if we operate under the assumption that max money will be waiting for Towns (four years and around $265 million), he still isn’t as likely to leave. New York was never going to move around key members of the roster to keep its backup big. It will absolutely shuffle the deck to keep Towns.
That doesn’t mean the Knicks should or will gut the core to re-sign him. Nor does it mean they must pay him whatever he wants. But it does mean this extension drama will have no bearing on where he finishes the 2026-27 season.
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