The New York Knicks will tip off their annual West Coast road trip against the Lakers in LA on Thursday, their first of five away games. The first matchup will be tough, as the Lakers have risen to the No. 2 seed in the West behind LeBron James and Luka Doncic.
New York is coming off a 114-102 loss to Golden State on Tuesday, which will be the team's last stop on their road trip on March 15. The Knicks will spend most of their time in California, except for a quick trip to Portland for a game on March 12 before they fly to San Francisco.
The five-game stint will be a good test for where the Knicks are with the playoffs set to begin in six weeks. What will make it even more challenging is Karl-Anthony Towns' potential absence. He was questionable for Tuesday's game against the Warriors before he was ruled out for personal reasons.
Tom Thibodeau said he isn't sure if Towns will travel to LA with the team on Wednesday, but that doesn't mean he'll miss the whole trip. He could travel on his own when he's ready. All Thibodeau said is that KAT needs "some time right now."
Thibs said he’s not sure if KAT will make the trip out west tomorrow. Said “he needs some time right now.” https://t.co/oNfgWh5yV5
— James L. Edwards III (@JLEdwardsIII) March 4, 2025
KAT may not travel with Knicks at the start of their road trip
Not only will New York's trip start against the surging Lakers, but it'll be the first game of a back-to-back. The Knicks will play in Intuit Dome for the first time on Friday. They'll have a couple of days off before playing the Kings and one day off between their next game against the Trail Blazers. New York will have two days off before playing Golden State in primetime again.
Except for Portland (who has won five of its last six games), the Knicks will play teams over .500. They beat the Kings at MSG earlier this year, but lost to the Lakers and Warriors. They haven't played the Clippers or Trail Blazers yet.
It'd be a huge positive if the Knicks went 4-for-5 on their trip, but going 3-for-5 wouldn't be a bad thing, either. Starting the trip with a win over the Lakers would be massive, but doing so will be difficult without Towns if he doesn't play.
Thibodeau didn't say what was going on with KAT because it wasn't his place. Towns' girlfriend, Jordyn Woods, tweeted "F--- cancer" on Tuesday night, but it's unclear if her tweet had something to do with KAT's absence. All fans can do is respect Towns' space and send him good vibes/thoughts/prayers.