Let’s start with the obvious: anytime Karl-Anthony Towns and the Minnesota Timberwolves share a court, the basketball gods pour a little extra hot sauce on the popcorn. Doesn’t matter if it’s preseason. There’s juice in this matchup.
Hard to believe, but it’s been just over a year since Towns packed his Louis Vuitton duffels and headed east, traded to New York in the deal that brought Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo, and the pick that became rookie Joan Beringer to Minnesota. It felt seismic at the time—half breakup, half liberation. Now? It’s starting to look like one of those rare NBA trades where both sides actually got what they wanted. Towns found the spotlight back home; the Wolves found an edge.
This will be the fourth meeting since the split: the Knicks took the preseason and the first regular-season contest in 2024, and the Wolves stole one in Madison Square Garden when Ant went full Broadway villain, and now we’re here. No banners at stake, no standings implications, but don’t kid yourself: both sides care.
A Tale of Two Vibes
The Wolves roll into New York after an uneven showing in their preseason home opener against Indiana. They looked like a team half awake at a Saturday brunch. There were some flashes of brilliance, and some moments where the hollandaise curdled.
Anthony Edwards dropped a casual 20 and looked ready to start the season tomorrow. Jaylen Clark’s defense was tighter than TSA security until he left with neck spasms. And Johnny Juzang? The guy went NBA Jam “He’s on fire!” mode in the fourth quarter, bombing threes like he was trying to unlock a secret character. The problem: everything in between felt like a pick-up run at Lifetime Fitness. The Pacers hustled, cut, rotated, and basically did everything your high-school coach preached while the Wolves looked… chill. Too chill.
It’s preseason, sure. No one’s asking Finch to break out the playoff rotation or full-court press. But the “flip the switch” version of the Wolves, the one that occasionally took quarters off last year, still shows up uninvited. And that’s the part that should make Wolves fans twitch a little. You don’t want to see that ghost in October.
The Cat-and-Mouse Game
Now comes the reunion in the Big Apple. Towns in orange and blue, with Madison Square Garden buzzing.
Minnesota’s counterpunch? The frontcourt trio of Rudy Gobert, Randle, and Naz Reid. The trio will try to rough him up early, deny rhythm, and keep him off the line. Donte DiVincenzo, meanwhile, gets his own reunion subplot. He’s the type who’d love to drop four threes on his former team just to stir the pot.
But the real subplot isn’t traded players facing their former teams, it’s the point guards.
Backup Point Guard Roulette
Mike Conley Jr. is the adult in the room, the professor holding a coffee (or cup of chili) in one hand and a clipboard in the other. The issue is what happens when he sits. Bones Hyland has quietly played himself into the “trustworthy spark plug” conversation during the first two preseason outings. Rob Dillingham, on the other hand, has looked like a sophomore figuring out that NBA defenses aren’t summer-league scrimmages.
Still, Dillingham did ball out in this building last January in his unofficial coming-out party. If he can rediscover that Garden energy tomorrow night, it might nudge Finch to keep him in the rotation mix. If not, the “Bones and DDV” plan becomes more real by the day.
The Johnny Juzang Heat-Check Watch
Let’s talk about Johnny Juzang. Every team has that one end-of-bench guy who makes you yell “Why doesn’t he play more?!” after every made three. Juzang’s that guy right now. His flamethrower fourth quarter versus Indiana was electric.
If Juzang can keep that rhythm going, he might lock up the final roster spot. For a Wolves team that spent parts of last season going full Siberia offensively for six-minute stretches, having a microwave scorer waiting in the wings could be the difference between “gritty win” and “painful flashbacks.”
Big-Picture Wolves Thoughts
Here’s the thing: Minnesota doesn’t need to prove they’re talented. They already have two All-Stars, a Defensive Player of the Year, and a bench that could probably beat half the East on a Tuesday night. What they need is consistency. Cohesion. That relentless, almost annoying OKC energy that got the Thunder to the Finals last year.
If the Wolves learned anything from that run, it’s that talent gets you to May, but habits get you to June. This preseason isn’t about wins; it’s about wiring. And for a team with legitimate championship potential, that starts with effort in games that “don’t matter.”
The MSG Moment
So here we are again: the Wolves, the Knicks. The Karl-Anthony Towns reunion tour.
Maybe it’s meaningless. Maybe it’s preseason. But if you’ve watched this team long enough, you know these little games do carry weight, especially when it’s your old franchise player on the other side, smirking after a jumper.
Here’s hoping Minnesota walks into Madison Square Garden with a chip on their shoulder and a little edge in their step. Because if they’re serious about taking that next leap, the switch can’t just be flipped, it’s got to stay on*.*
And if they walk out with a win? Consider it an anniversary gift. It’s been one year since the breakup, and the Wolves are doing just fine.