NBA Notes: Knicks, Karl-Anthony Towns, Hawks, Larry Nance Jr., Magic

October 4, 2024

KNICKS: Star big man Karl-Anthony Towns suggested his relationship with Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau should help him get acclimated to his new NBA surroundings.

“I think it gives us a little bit of a head start,” Towns told reporters, via Chris Herring of ESPN. “I know the offense he likes to run. I know the way he likes to play defense and what he expects from his players.”

Thibodeau was fully in support of the trade that sent power forward Julius Randle, guard Donte DiVincenzo, small forward Keita Bates-Diop and a first-round pick to the Timberwolves, per Stefan Bondy of the New York Post.

“He’s a lot more experienced,” Thibodeau said of Towns. “I think all those experiences teaches you a lot. He’s been through a lot of different things now, so he’s bringing all those experiences here.

“I think as with most players, now he’s had experience being deep in the playoffs. He knows what that’s like. As much as you try to prepare for it, until you go through it, you don’t fully understand what it is and I think his understanding is much further along now than it was his second year in the league, and his skill set is so unique. I think he fits well with everybody.”

The Knicks reportedly had been in pursuit of a Towns trade with the Timberwolves for more than a year. We have that full story here.
The Knicks have hired former center Patrick Ewing as a “basketball ambassador.” Ewing was the first No. 1 overall pick (by New York) of the NBA lottery era back in 1985.

HAWKS: Newcomer Larry Nance Jr. praised the play of forward Jalen Johnson at camp, indicating that Johnson has picked up where he left off as a player on the rise.

“He dominated practice today,” Nance told reporters of Johnson. “He was awesome. He was knocking down threes in transition. He’s been really, really impressive, and I’m trying to push him into speaking some more and leading the group and breaking the huddles and stuff like that, because he’s going to be a guy in this league and with that comes ‘heavy is the head that wears the crown.’ He’s going to wear the crown one day, and he is being groomed for that.”

Nance himself has also garnered praise from his Atlanta teammates and the coaching staff, proving to be a vocal leader. We have that full story here.

MAGIC: The Magic are expected to be a sleeper team in the difficult East, with their youth, energy, size and strong team chemistry. Star big man Paolo Banchero suggested he prepared himself even more because of it.

“I worked on my body three or four days a week — sometimes lifting, sometimes agility, some days conditioning,” Banchero said, via NBA insider David Alrdidge of The Athletic. “Just trying to get in the best shape heading into this season. And obviously, as the season goes on and on, just trying to stay consistent with my habits, and once you get to the playoffs, just having that second wind.”

Fellow big man Franz Wagner, who primarily plays small forward, added that he and Banchero are trying to grow into being vocal leaders.

“We’re not the super-outgoing personalities, not the yellers on the team,” Wagner said, via Aldridge. “At some point, that’s going to be required from us, though, especially with each other. We’ve got a great deal of respect for each other. We both really enjoy playing together. I think we have a great relationship. I think that’s the start, just having that trust that when you are holding each other accountable, the other person knows it’s coming from a good place.”