Roger Rubin: Knicks need to restart extension talks now with Karl-Anthony Towns
Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns looks to shoot during the first half of an NBA preseason game against the Washington Wizards on Thursday at Madison Square Garden. Credit: AP/Adam Hunger
GREENBURGH — The Knicks’ season doesn’t start until the Oct. 20 opener against Philadelphia at the Garden. That means there is still time.
There’s still time to re-open the lines of communication with center Karl-Anthony Towns. Still time to negotiate a contract extension with the starting center from the first Knicks team to win an NBA title in 53 years. Still time to make certain there are as few obstacles as possible as the Knicks try to repeat.
On Friday morning, the Knicks announced they no longer would continue any of the extension talks they’d engaged in with Towns, Josh Hart and Deuce McBride, issuing a statement that read, “As an organization, our entire focus is on preparing for the upcoming season and delivering another year for our fans to be proud of. As a result, we will not be negotiating contract extensions until later in the season and will remain solely focused on preparing for the start of the season.”
Towns spoke about that decision for the first time after practice on Sunday, saying: “It was news to me, but obviously, [I’m] very disappointed, to say the least.
“Let’s be honest here: Even though there was no business done, there’s still business to be handled. After 53 years, we found a way to bring this trophy back to New York, and we intend for it to stay in New York.”
Here’s where the situation between the Knicks and Towns stands: He is eligible to sign a four-year extension at a maximum of $276 million and reportedly is willing to take less to remain with the team. But he is not willing to give the Knicks the discount they sought in what was reported to be an offer for four years and $200 million.
Towns has the choice at the end of the season to either exercise a $61 million player option for the 2027-28 season or become a free agent. And if the organization and Towns cannot get back to the bargaining table before the season opens, the only route to restart talks during the season is for him to decline the player option.
Asked if he has considered that, he replied, “I wouldn’t say I’ve thought about it because I never thought we would get to [this] point.”
It wasn’t until the Knicks made their historic run to the title that it became clear to everyone that what president of basketball operations Leon Rose had built was an architectural wonder. It’s the reason the organization has retained almost every key player.
Players in every professional sport sometimes must deal with an uncertain future because it’s the final year of their contract or they wonder if the team will pick up an option or extend another offer. Some are able to put the uncertainty about the future out of their minds and perform at their peak. Others don’t cope well with the ambiguity — the notion of uprooting a family is an example — and concern leaks into their game.
Towns has never given reason to believe he is anything but the former, but we know he is disappointed and believes his employer is not recognizing his value to the organization.
“We’re all humans, but what I do say [and] it’s true [is] my only philosophy since we won, and the only thing I’ve had in my mind, is about ‘how do we win another one?’ ’’ he said. “So for me, it’s the same focus that I came in this season with. It’s the same focus I’m going to go right into [the season] with: How do we keep the trophy in New York past just this one summer?”
There’s a chance here to win another title, again have the best team in the league with the best arena in the league. Substantive opportunities to win championships are precious. To get two in a row? Priceless.
There’s a little more than a week left. The Knicks need to at least try for an agreement. Does the organization really want to make a decision it ultimately could look back on with regret?
Roger Rubin returned to Newsday in 2018 to write about high schools, colleges and baseball following 20 years at the Daily News. A Baseball Hall of Fame voter since 2011, he has covered 13 MLB postseasons and 14 NCAA Final Fours.
