4 overrated NBA offseason moves that will fail to move the needle

2. Karl-Anthony Towns to the Knicks

The New York Knicks are still one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference, but the big move they made for Towns could come back to bite them. 

There is no denying the offensive fit for Towns. He is a floor-spacing big and is the ideal pick and pop partner for Jalen Brunson. His ability to stretch the floor as a five-man will open up the floor for Brunson to attack and with the presence of Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby, the Knicks should have a potent offensive attack.

The problem is that now Towns is the sole backline defense for New York in the paint and with a conference that features the likes of Joel Embiid and Giannis Antetokounmpo, and other teams with big frontcourts like the Cavs and the Magic, they could struggle to protect the paint. That has been a source of strength for them the last couple of seasons, and it could become a weakness.

Towns struggled defensively as the five man prior to the Wolves acquiring Rudy Gobert. They made that move because they didn’t trust KAT as their rim protector.Towns has also not been very durable for most of his career. He’s played over 60 games only twice in the last five years.

He has a history of lower leg injuries. He and Knicks center Mitchell Robinson can’t be trusted to stay healthy. In a system where head coach Tom Thibodeau is known for giving his starters heavy minutes, can Towns survive that? The Knicks also gave up two key contributors in Donte DiVincenzo and Julius Randle. How much will they miss them?

So while the Towns move looks great on the surface, when you look deeper, it’s not as great as it seems. The Knicks should still be at the top of the east, but to pencil them in as the number one threat to the Boston Celtics is a bit naive.