The NBA is back.

Not just because training camps are opening across the league next week, but mainly because it’s making headlines again with monster transactions. This came out of the blue and overwhelmed some principles:

Karl Anthony Towns is heading to the New York Knicks for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo in what is ultimately a three-team trade.

Let’s break down the winners and losers of this deal, but first, here’s the full transaction:

New York receives: Karl-Anthony Cities
Minnesota receives: Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo, 2025 first-round pick (via Detroit, top-13 protected)
Charlotte receives: DaQuan Jeffries, “draft compensation” (the details of the players and picks that went to the Hornets to make the money all work have not been finalized at time of writing)

WINNER: New York Knicks

Ultimately, it’s this simple: The Knicks needed a center and just landed one of the best in the NBA.

Towns is an All-NBA level big man who makes this team better. New York had been eyeing the New Jersey native for years and now needs help with the five (Mitchell Robinson is recovering from surgery until around Christmas. and Isaiah Hartenstein left for a higher salary in Oklahoma City), the Knicks got one of the best in the game.

It’s not a hand-in-glove fit. There are questions.

At the top of the list is how well Towns can hold up as the rim-protecting defensive anchor of a Tom Thibodeau defense. Will the mercurial player deliver every night as Thibs demands? What worked in Minnesota is that the defensive role – and the rebounding effect that comes with it – fell to Rudy Gobert, allowing Towns to play the four and stay a bit hidden in the defense. (To be fair, Towns had some good defensive moments, especially against Nikola Jokic when the Timberwolves beat the Nuggets in the second round of the playoffs last season.) Towns now has to take on that role full-time, and do so until Robinson returns.

Thibodeau had his frustrations with Towns’ effort and play when he coached the Kentucky big man in Minnesota (during the Jimmy Butler era), but he has said several times in recent years that he was open to working with Towns again work. He’s had nothing but positive things to say about Towns lately.

Losing DiVincenzo stitches made him a crucial part of their bench and a fan favorite, but it was the cost of getting the deal done. reported well-connected Ian Begley of SNY.TV. Once the Knicks accepted that and included him in the deal, things came together quickly. To get talent you have to give up talent. The Knicks did that.

And now they’re better at it. It may take some time for this new lineup to come together, but New York is now playing a major role and is a real threat from the East.

POTENTIAL LOSER: Knicks depth

If there’s one thing the Knicks have going for them in the East — aside from Boston and Philadelphia, who are both very good — it’s depth.

The Knicks’ starting five can appeal to anyone: Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby and Towns.

The sofa is… less impressive. To put it kindly. Miles “Deuce” McBride has a lot on his shoulders now, and once Robinson returns, that will help. A combination of Precious Achiuwa, Cameron Payne and Jericho Sims will get their chance. Or maybe Landry Shamet or Marcus Morris Sr., if the guys sign a training camp deal, make the final roster. None of that blows anyone away.

Tom Thibodeau is more than happy to run his starters into the ground with heavy minutes, but he – and the Knicks front office – will have to find some bench minutes during the 82-game marathon to make this work.

WINNER: Timberwolves (short notice)

Blame the second wave of the luxury tax, if you will, for driving this trade. In front offices around the league, it was considered a matter of when, not if, Minnesota would have to trade Towns for financial reasons. With Anthony Edwards’ new max extension kicking off this season, on top of Gobert’s max deal, Towns’ max deal and expensive role players — Jaden McDaniels made $23 million this season — something had to give, and it would be KAT. This team was about to become too expensive for any owner – especially Glen Taylor but also the Alex Rodriguez/Marc Lore/Mike Bloomberg group – and changes came.

However, after last season’s run to the Western Conference Finals, Minnesota was expected to keep its contending team — the team that used its size to beat defending champion Denver — together for at least another season to make it a point.

No. However, this trade should keep the Timberwolves at the top of the West for at least another season. It also saves money; Randle and DiVincenzo together make about $9 million less than Towns.

This may work on the field, but it puts a lot of pressure on coach Chris Finch to get the most out of a roster whose pieces don’t really fit.

Randle knows how to get buckets, he’s a bully player in the paint who averaged 24 points and 9.2 rebounds per game last season. He’s also a ball-stopper on offense and doesn’t space the floor, so pairing him with the non-shooting Gobert allows opponents to pack the paint and take away driving lanes for Edwards. That’s where DiVincenzo comes in; his shooting and secondary play could fit well next to Edwards, and it takes some of the burden off 37-year-old point guard Mike Conley.

This deal could mean a better chance at reigning Sixth Man of the Year Naz Reid if Finch decides he needs to spread out Randle and Edwards’ minutes as much as possible. DiVincenzo’s arrival takes some pressure off rookie Rob Dillingham (and Terrence Shannon Jr.) to contribute on Day 1.

It’s a strange puzzle to put together, but there’s a lot of talent on this roster and a whole season to figure out how to make it work. This could come together for the Timberwolves this season, they should still be near the top of the West and there should be a postseason threat coming from the West.

LOSER: Long-term Timberwolves

Loser may be too strong a term here, but times are a changing in Minnesota.

Remember, this trade was about saving money for Minnesota. Randle is making $28.9 million this season with a player option for $30.9 next season, which he is not expected to pick up. The way the Timberwolves ultimately save money here is to let Randle go – or find a trade for him next season (perhaps a sign-and-trade) – and move on with his money.

With 37-year-old point guard Conley not being the long-term answer at that position, this team will look different in a few years. Edwards is the rising superstar and the man everything is built around. He is the face of the franchise. Gobert will be a presence in the paint, with McDaniels, DiVincenzo and Reid still there, but the roster will change in the coming years. The bottom line is that Towns is an All-NBA level talent now playing in Manhattan and once Randle is gone, this will be a very different team. Probably not that good, at least until Tim Connelly and the Minnesota front office figure out exactly what the team around Edwards should look like.

LOSER: ‘Nova Knicks

After the trade for Mikal Bridges this summer, there was excitement to see the ‘Nova Knicks’ – a core of four Villanova players of Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, Bridges and DiVincenzo – winning big in college and now looking to do it together at Madison Square Garden.

Things fell apart before the four even went to court together. How stupid that is. DiVincenzo was the price to make this trade happen, and the Knicks were right to do so, but it’s still a bit sad.

WINNER: Denver Nuggets

Tim Connelly was the front office mastermind who built a championship team in Denver, then went to Minnesota and built the only team with the size to beat them. The Timberwolves defeated the Nuggets in a hard-fought second-round series last May because they had the size to match Nikola Jokic and Aaron Gordon. Towns had the best defensive series of his career against Jokic, all that size to throw at the Serbian was the difference.

Now Minnesota is smaller and Jokic can look over Randle until the NBA Finals. Oklahoma City may be blocking that view (and the Nuggets are a lesser team without Kentavious Caldwell-Pope), but Minnesota simply traded its power to Denver. That’s a win for Jokic and the Nuggets.