Karl-Anthony Towns out with knee soreness as Knicks face decimated Orlando
Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns calls out to fans during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Utah Jazz Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in New York. Credit: AP/Frank Franklin II
It was hard for the Orlando Magic to muster much sympathy for the Knicks with the news shortly before game time Monday night that they would be without Karl-Anthony Towns. The center was out with right knee patellar tendinopathy.
It was only the third game on the sideline for Towns this season, which must have sounded like a dream to Magic coach Jamahl Mosley, who has been without much of his top-tier talent this season. That included Monday, as the Magic were without Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner, Mo Wagner, Jalen Suggs and Gary Harris.
This has not been an issue for the Knicks this season. The starters rarely get a night off even as the bumps and bruises of the NBA season hit them.
Jalen Brunson was listed as probable Monday and was in the starting lineup, playing through right calf tightness that forced him to sit out one game last week. Deuce McBride was out for a fourth straight game with a hamstring strain.
The Knicks had managed to keep their starting five on the floor, entering Monday with all five among the top 15 in total minutes played. Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart and OG Anunoby lined up in the top three spots with Brunson seventh and Towns 15th.
While critics outside the organization have pointed to the minutes and criticized coach Tom Thibodeau, the reality is that the team has avoided the major injuries that have afflicted other teams and many star players. The Knicks have cut down on the court time outside of games, limiting practices and even cutting back on morning shootarounds.
Even after taking a shot to his knee late in Saturday night’s game in Chicago, Towns went through a long workout in the weight room, not finishing up until the rest of the team already was out of the arena. It’s part of the maintenance and work that prepares them to play.
“The more time you go through it, you understand how important that is,” Thibodeau said. “You condition your body to what you want to do. And the players that are serious about their craft make that commitment and understand how important that is.
“Early on, until a player goes through it, he doesn’t fully understand what an NBA schedule looks like. I think that’s why you see the commitment players make in the offseason where they stay in great shape so they can endure a long season.”
“It’s all preseason diet, preseason working, your workouts, your lifting and the will to win,” Towns said recently. “I’d lie if I said I wasn’t exhausted. I think the film shows it. But I was willing to do whatever it takes to get the win.’’
With Orlando so beaten up, it made sense for Towns not to push himself, but he insists that if he can play, he will never opt to sit. Even when he got fouled in the final minutes Saturday and limped off the court, he wanted to remain on the floor.
“I ain’t going to quit,” Towns said. “That’s not my MO. I want to keep going. I looked at Jericho Sims, he pointed at me, I pointed at him, and said let’s go. I wasn’t going to quit. I don’t care how I feel. I’m not going to quit on my teammates.”
With the Knicks opting to hold out Towns, Sims got the start Monday. And as Thibodeau has maintained a next-man-up mentality, Mosley is doing the same with Orlando.
This was the Knicks’ fourth meeting with the Magic, and it has been bizarre to follow game by game.
Banchero has missed all four games. Franz Wagner had 30 points against the Knicks in the first meeting and then went out with a major injury. Mo Wagner had 32 points in the second game, then went out with a season-ending injury. Suggs led Orlando with 27 points in the third matchup, then had to be wheeled off the floor last week with back spasms. So for Mosley, it’s next man up.
“It’s a long season,” he said. “Guys understand the preparation you do in the summer is to possibly get an opportunity. Our coaches do a tremendous job of focusing in on [a] game plan. Getting these guys prepared for whatever moment happens. And we’ve seen it all, for the most part.
“Credit to the coaches. Credit to these guys for staying ready and waiting for their opportunity as well as focusing on the defensive end of the floor, knowing what we have to get done each and every night to give ourselves a chance.”
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
