There is nothing more NBA than a blindside blockbuster trade less than a week before training camp opens! In case you missed it, Karl-Anthony Towns is reportedly headed to the Big Apple.
- How can you not respect what the Knicks are doing? Even if I’m a tad skeptical of Karl-Anthony Towns’ fit, the move makes plenty of sense for a team that was on the brink of an Eastern Conference Finals berth last season. Towns will help diversify the New York offense and give them a frontcourt player who can space the floor at an extremely high level. Keeping the lane clear for Jalen Brunson and Mikal Bridges is an absolute must, and Julius Randle’s ball-stopping play wasn’t going to help make that happen. The Knicks will certainly need time to figure out the proper workload distribution on offense, but their ceiling is undoubtedly higher … and it was already pretty darn high.
- Add New York to the long list of Eastern Conference teams that aren’t going anywhere. Also, you can add them to the even longer list of NBA teams who are far better than the Bulls at building a winning roster. Seriously, how do two teams with tax apron restrictions figure out a blockbuster deal … and the Bulls can’t even move Zach LaVine after a year-plus of trying? Not to mention, this is another prime example of how aggressive you have to be in today’s NBA. The Knicks saw a glimmer of hope and instantly doubled down. Meanwhile, after a 2020-21 season where Chicago was near the top of the East, they decided to do absolutely nothing to improve their roster. Look where that led them.
- The thing I’ll complain about is the money. New York is acting like the big market it is and took on KAT’s four-year, $220.4 million deal. Might they come to regret that down the road? It’s possible. But they aren’t concerned about it one bit. Meanwhile, the Chicago Bulls have still only paid the luxury tax once in franchise history. Yippie.
- The Chicago Bulls officially announced their 2024-25 training camp roster on Friday. The list matches the exact one we projected earlier this month. The key questions are who will earn the team’s final two-way contract spot and will Onuralp Bitim maintain his spot on the 15-man roster? My gut tells me that more than one of the Bulls’ invites will make their presence felt over the next couple of weeks, which could lead to the organization moving on from Bitim.
- Someone we really haven’t talked about at all is Chris Duarte. The Bulls added the wing in their sign-and-trade deal with DeMar DeRozan, and he’s now entering the final year of his deal. I’ve assumed that he will spend most of his time outside of the rotation, especially after struggling the past two seasons to flash the same promise he did during his rookie year. At the same time, this is a “figure it out” year for the Bulls. They may want to give Duarte at least a taste of playing time to see if there is anything there worth keeping around.
- The Toronto Raptors announced this week that Vince Carter will have his jersey retired. Take notes, Chicago Bulls!
- The fact that several rival teams have made an effort to congratulate Derrick Rose on his retirement speaks volumes. His impact on the league – in such a short amount of time – was special.
- Foreshadowing!?
- We’re only 10 days from possibly seeing Lonzo Ball on an NBA floor again! The Bulls will tip off their preseason in Cleveland on Oct. 8.
- Checking in on the Blackhawks roster …
- Pay extra attention to the offensive line, Ryan.