Karl-Anthony Towns has become the steady hand behind the Knicks’ defense, and the early numbers this season say that role is still very much intact even without Mitchell Robinson.
New York entered Tuesday morning with the NBA’s seventh-lowest defensive rating, according to the league’s website, after ranking ninth following Sunday night’s games. The Knicks didn’t even need to take the floor Monday to keep climbing before their Tuesday night matchup with the Milwaukee Bucks. It’s a strong start for Mike Brown’s group, which has already drawn plenty of attention for how well it has held up on the defensive end.
That’s happening with Towns in the middle of it all. The Knicks are allowing the third-fewest points in the paint on average, according to TeamRankings, and that comes with a small sample size attached. Still, the numbers line up with what New York showed throughout the 2026 NBA postseason, when it finished with the league’s best defense and carried that edge through all four playoff series.
The reputation around Jalen Brunson and Towns has long been that of defensive liabilities, but both were major pieces of that playoff run. Brunson earned credit for taking charges and throwing his body around.
Towns, though, had the bigger assignment. Playing center means more than just contesting shots at the rim; it means organizing the defense and handling the responsibilities that come with “quarterbacking” the group behind you.
New York’s perimeter help made that job easier. Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby formed the “Wingstop” pairing on the outside, and Josh Hart gave the Knicks another layer with his all-around defensive versatility. Bridges was especially important in the 2025 NBA Playoffs, including the second round against the Boston Celtics, and Hart’s value showed up when he switched onto CJ McCollum against the Atlanta Hawks before becoming a key part of the resistance against the Spurs’ slashing guards.
Mitchell Robinson also gave the Knicks rebounding, switchability and rim protection during that championship run, but Towns was the anchor all along. The Celtics may have signed away the former Knick center, yet the results have kept pointing back to Madison Square Garden. Since Towns defended Nikola Jokic in the 2024 Western Conference Finals, the evidence has continued to pile up that he is no longer the kind of defender critics once labeled him as.
The trophy helps. So do the numbers.
In Other News...
James Dolan May Be Standing In The Knicks' Way Again
Karl-Anthony Towns irritation over not having a contract extension appears to be aimed less at the Knicks basketball operations staff than at owner James Dolan, according to James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. The backdrop here is straightforward enough: New York has been working through the realities of a pricey roster, and the extension conversation has become part of that larger picture as the team tries to balance present ambition with future flexibility.
Dolans reluctance to push the Knicks into the NBAs second salary cap apron has added another layer to the discussion, with the concern centered on roster-building restrictions rather than simple spending. The Athletic piece lays out how those second-apron rules can limit what a team can do, while also noting that New York is already living with some of those constraints because of its current salary situation, which makes the extension question feel less like a routine negotiation and more like a test of how far the franchise is willing to go. [Read more 🡒]
Knicks Face A Bigger Karl-Anthony Towns Decision Than Fans Realize
The Knicks have already put a big number on the table for Karl-Anthony Towns, with a reported offer in the $45 million to $50 million per year range, but there still is not an extension in place. For a team that has spent recent seasons trying to build around star power, the hesitation says as much about long-term planning as it does about Towns himself.
New York is weighing more than just the immediate fit. The front office is wary of locking into another expensive deal that could age badly as stars get older, especially with salary cap rules making every major commitment harder to unwind. The result is a familiar Knicks balancing act, one that could shape not only Towns' future but the flexibility of the roster around him. [Read more 🡒]
Knicks Keep Finding Bargains And Jordan Clarkson Is Proving Why
The Knicks have made a habit of squeezing real value out of the margins, and Jordan Clarkson is the latest example. On a veterans minimum deal, he has been one of their most productive players this season and has even led the team in plus/minus through its first nine games, a reminder that bargain contracts can carry real weight when the roster is built the right way.
Landry Shamet offered a similar blueprint last season, arriving on a non-guaranteed deal before turning that opportunity into a multi-year contract after helping in the playoffs. In a salary cap era where every usable rotation piece matters, New York has shown it can uncover players who outperform the price tag, and Clarkson is giving that approach another boost. [Read more 🡒]