The Knicks are doing badly, Madison Square Garden booed its players, the season is taking a strange turn… and the name of Karl-Anthony Towns is starting to circulate more loudly than expected. According to Steve Popper, the Knicks have already had trade discussions around their interior, with Memphis, Orlando and Charlotte cited among the teams contacted. Two weeks before the February 5 deadline, New York finds itself faced with a simple question: endure the storm, or provoke the storm.
New York is coming off an evening that hurts the ego a lot: 114-97 defeat against the Dallas C team, a meeting where the Knicks were dropped very early, until finding themselves trailed 75-47 at halftime. In the room, the boos fall… and a name appears in the transfer discussions: Karl-Anthony Towns.
New defeat for the Knicks…
…the 9th in 11 matches. Nothing is going well anymore.
You’re at home on national television and you’re getting massacred by the Mavs C team.
Zero pride, zero defense, nothing, and as a bonus, boos in Madison Square Garden.
It’s the crisis ⚠️⚠️⚠️ pic.twitter.com/bLRG5aMLwa
— TrashTalk (@TrashTalk_fr) January 20, 2026
The timing is no coincidence either. The context is heavy, electric, almost impatient. New York at the head in the washing machine: 9 losses in the last 11 games, 29th defense in the NBA since mid-December. The room whistled, and Towns took it head-on, bluntly:
« The fans do their part, it’s up to us to do ours.«
When the atmosphere becomes this tense, anything that looks like a potential solution ends up being evaluated, even if it seems counterintuitive on paper.
In the teams cited as interested in KAT, there are “two groups”. On the one hand, the teams seriously involved: three clearly stand out: Memphis, Orlando and Charlotte.
Then there is a second group with teams mentioned but nothing seems very serious at this stage : the Bucks and the Blazers.
RUMOR: Karl-Anthony Towns’ name first came up in early summer Giannis talks, but league sources say discussions have since expanded to include Memphis, Orlando, and Charlotte, per @StevePopper. pic.twitter.com/bI6UH1WEyW
— SleeperKnicks (@SleeperKnicks) January 20, 2026
Milwaukee invites itself above all by the context: as soon as we talk about a big fish like Giannis Antetokounmpo, the same player profiles naturally come up in conversations, and Towns is part of this category. And then there is the cold reality: $53.1 million this season. At this price, no deal is simple, and discussions quickly turn to heavy constructions, sometimes involving several teams, where each part is a constraint as much as a solution. And then from a sporting point of view, it’s difficult to see the real interest that the Bucks would have knowing that he has a similar profile (Myles Turner), who defends.
Portland feels more like a stage set than a hot track. The name exists mainly because a media scenario is circulating: the idea of sending Towns to the Blazers while recovering Jrue Holiday et Jerami Grant New York side.
To summarize simply: Memphis, Orlando, Charlotte are the names to remember because they stick to reported discussions, however no player names have been released at this time.
Milwaukee is a more indirect presence, linked to the big issues of the offseason.
Portland is mostly a building idea more than an actual lead, but it deserves to be at least mentioned.
And in the middle of all this, the real news is the attitude of the Knicks: the free fall continues, without any identity or burst of pride. If New Yorkers want to target the month of June, we will have to act, both for those on the ground and those in the offices. As we approach the February 5that’s often how big moves start.
To be continued.
Sources : BasketNews, Yahoo! Sports, Newsday, Hoopsrumors
