After spending the first nine seasons of his career with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Karl-Anthony Towns is on his way.

According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the T-Wolves are trading the three-time All-Star to the New York Knicks in exchange for Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo and a first-round draft pick via the Detroit Pistons.

The draft pick is a top-13 protected pick from 2025, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks.

SNYs Ian Begley added that the Pistons, Atlanta Hawks and Miami Heat, among others, were talking to the Knicks about a trade for Randle.

This is a huge gamble from the T-Wolves coming off one of the best seasons in franchise history and plenty of optimism about their potential in 2024-2025.

Given the amount of money Minnesota had invested in the big three, Anthony Edwards and Rudy Gobert, building out the depth was going to be a challenge.

The easiest way for the Timberwolves to rebuild their roster was always to trade Towns, but it seemed like president of basketball operations Tim Connelly took a different approach.

Connelly made a smart move during the draft by trading to the San Antonio Spurs for No. 8 overall pick Rob Dillingham.

Dealing away cities after this move seems strange, but it is still true insecurity about the ownership situation of the franchise that could influence these decisions.

The on-field implications of the Towns trade will be interesting to watch and see how head coach Chris Finch handles it.

Minnesota finished third in the Western Conference thanks to the highest defensive rating in the NBA (109.0). The team advanced to the Western Conference Finals for the second time in franchise history before losing to the Dallas Mavericks.

Towns had a solid season with 21.8 points on 50.4 percent shooting and 8.3 rebounds per game in 62 starts. His four-year, $224.2 million extension, signed in July 2022, starts next season.

The 27-year-old was drafted No. 1 overall in 2015 and has been one of the most productive scoring centers in the NBA since entering the league. He has averaged at least 20 points per game in each of the past seven seasons and is 39.5 percent from three-point range in his career.

After winning a playoff series in each of the last two seasons, the Knicks atmosphere is as high as it has been in a long time. It helps to have a bona fide star at point guard in Jalen Brunson.

The front office has done an excellent job around Brunson, most notably acquiring OG Anunoby in a midseason deal with the Toronto Raptors last season. He signed a long-term deal in the summer after the team also acquired Mikal Bridges in a trade with the Brooklyn Nets.

Towns will be an interesting matchup with head coach Tom Thibodeau, who has a strong defensive style. He has been limited in that area throughout his career, but his scoring ability will make them a more formidable team on the offensive end of the court.

It helps the Knicks to have Mitchell Robinson play in the paint, even if he is currently sidelined due to injury.

The Knicks’ stock is high right now, and this is a big move by general manager Scott Perry to get the franchise closer to winning a championship.