TORONTO — Karl-Anthony Towns, the subject of persistent trade rumors ahead of next week’s deadline, said he’s unconcerned with the chatter.
“I feel like I’ve been in trade rumors a lot for a lot of times, for a year damn near. That don’t matter to me,” said Towns, who was traded from the Timberwolves to the Knicks before last season. “I don’t look at social media or none of that stuff. I focus on the job on hand which is trying to get wins every single night. As long as I do that, I do my job, I go home happy and I feel accomplished. I’m not worried about what anybody got to say or people write or anything like that.”
At least as of earlier this week, the Knicks were not talking to other teams about trading Towns, according to sources. But his struggles have compelled speculation about his availability and that will intensify with recent news that Giannis Antetokounmpo is available.
Towns has a longstanding relationship with Knicks president Leon Rose, who once represented the center as a longtime agent at CAA. Still, Towns said he hasn’t discussed the trade rumors with Rose.
“We only worry about one thing. That’s winning. So I got no reason to go into depth on anything else,” said Towns before the Knicks’ 119-92 blowout win over the Raptors. “It’s just at the end of the day the conversations revolve around one thing and one thing only every single day, 24 hours a day — is winning. How can we win? How can I help this team win? The sacrifices I’ve got to continue to make every single night for us to be the best version of ourselves. I’ve been willing to do that every single night, regardless of what anyone talks about.”
Towns, an All-NBA selection last season, became eligible for a contract extension before the season but there was no traction toward an agreement.
He is shooting career lows this campaign and continued those struggles Wednesday (3 for 11 from beyond the arc), but he also grabbed a season-high 22 boards.
The Knicks had a case of the back-to-back blues.
Two players — Miles McBride and Mitchell Robinson — were ruled out of Wednesday’s win for “ankle injury management,” one day after both played in a victory at MSG versus the Kings.
Josh Hart (ankle injury management) and Jalen Brunson (illness) were also questionable Wednesday before playing.
Hart scored 22 points and Brunson had a rare off night offensively, scoring just 13.
With the depth compromised, Tyler Kolek went from consecutive DNPs to 20 minutes on Wednesday, collecting 10 assists.
