According to reports, the New York Knicks found a way to get NBA Star Karl-Anthony Towns before training camp begins in exchange for Julius Randle and other pieces. Both Towns and Randle are former Wildcats who played under John Calipari.
Towns was one of the many one-and-done players for the Wildcats. He played for Kentucky in 2015 and was later drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves that same year. He was SEC Freshman of the Year and First Team All-SEC in 2015.
Randle, in a similar way, enjoyed one year at Kentucky, playing the year before Towns got there. He was part of the squad that helped the Wildcats get to the National Championship game in 2014, but they fell short to UCONN 60-54. Randle was one of the finalists for the Naismith player of the year and also earned two SEC honors in First Team All-SEC and SEC Freshman of the Year.
Towns has only every played for one NBA team, the Minnesota Timberwolves who drafted him out of Kentucky. Randle, on the other hand, was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers but went on to play for the New Orleans Pelicans, and most recently the New York Knicks.
According to reports, these are the two major pieces of a trade package that would send Towns to the Knicks and Randle to the Timberwolves.
The Knicks are nearing a trade to send package around Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo to Minnesota for Karl-Anthony Towns, sources tell me and @JonKrawczynski. https://t.co/X74Nm280Og
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 28, 2024
According to Fansided NBA reporter Jonathan Lurensky, "Randle's future with the Knicks was already starting to become unclear as the franchise seemed unwilling to offer the veteran a long-term contract extension worth up to $181.5 million over four years." Lurensky goes on to say that the trade also makes sense for the Timberwolves because "owns seemed to be on his way out of Minnesota as the Timberwolves appeared to have no interest in paying the luxury tax. The franchise has flirted with paying the tax but an ownership battle that has no ending in sight has made it unclear."
While the league is flooded with former Kentucky Wildcats, it is still very fun and intriguing when a blockbuster trade features multiple Wildcat stars.