Karl-Anthony Towns and the Knicks are already staring down a messy contract standoff, and the tension showed up right as New York opened its 2026 preseason Monday.
According to a New York Post report by Stefan Bondy, extension talks between Towns and the Knicks are not going smoothly. Towns, who became eligible in August for a four-year, $277 million max extension, apparently expected the process to be simple. Instead, the talks have gone sideways, and the 30-year-old is said to feel disrespected by the team.
That frustration is rooted in money and in what Towns believes he’s brought to the franchise. The Post reported that New York has put a $200 million offer on the table, which is $77 million below the max, even though Towns is willing to take less to help the team stay together.
“Simply put, I want to do something to keep the team together and can work with the Knicks and also values me,” Towns said Monday before the preseason opener. “And none of those things are close to happening.”
When Bondy asked whether a deal would be in place by the start of the regular season, Towns was blunt: “it don’t look good.”
He was even more direct when asked about whether he feels he’s earned a new payday after helping New York win a title.
“No s-t Sherlock. I just won a championship.
You’d think it was pretty easy. Unless you guys (reporters) think I have something else to prove.”
The financial picture around the Knicks only makes the situation trickier. James Dolan has a strict mandate to stay under the second apron, and New York also has major money commitments coming for Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Miles McBride. Bondy reported that those talks also do not appear to have much traction at the moment.
So the question hanging over the Knicks is simple: can they keep Towns, Brunson, Hart and McBride together and still stay beneath the second apron? Or is there more going on here than what’s publicly known?
Towns arrived in New York two Octobers ago after the Minnesota Timberwolves traded him to the Knicks. He went on to help lead New York to its first NBA title since 1973.
His production has stayed right in line with what he did in Minnesota. In 573 games with the Timberwolves, Towns averaged 22.9 points, 10.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists while shooting 52.4% from the field and 39.8% from three.
In two seasons with the Knicks, he’s been nearly the same player statistically: 22.2 points, 12.3 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 147 games, with shooting splits of 51.4% from the field and 39.5% from beyond the arc.
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