It didn’t take long for Karl-Anthony Towns to deploy his full offensive arsenal.
One minute and 11 seconds into the Knicks’ 116-94 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday night, the 7-foot Towns drained his first 3-pointer of the evening.
32 seconds later, he made another.
At the 7:37 mark of the opening period, Towns nailed yet another 3-pointer. And on the Knicks’ next possession, Towns drove from the top of the key, blazed past fellow 7-footer Brook Lopez and exploded to the rim for a left-handed slam.
It was that kind of night for the uniquely gifted Towns, who continues to establish himself as the best player on the star-powered Knicks to begin the season — and keeps making their preseason trade for him look like a smashing success.
Towns used his unicorn-like blend of size, sharp shooting and athleticism to deliver 32 points, 11 rebounds and five assists in 32 minutes in Friday’s statement victory at Madison Square Garden, which evened the Knicks’ record to 4-4.
He shot 12-of-20 from the field and 4-of-8 from 3-point range.
Towns, 28, repeatedly got the best of Lopez, the runner-up for NBA Defensive Player of the Year in 2022-23, who couldn’t keep up with the Knicks center’s mobility. He beat Lopez for two more driving dunks in the second quarter and sank a hook shot over him from about nine feet out.
Later in the quarter, Towns displayed his physicality to convert a 3-point play, finishing a lay-up while drawing a foul from mismatched Bucks guard AJ Green.
Towns had 27 points on 10-of-16 shooting, seven rebounds and three assists in the first half alone to set the tone for the Knicks’ blowout.
On a night Bucks superstars Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard visited the Garden, KAT was the top dog.
The Knicks took a risk in acquiring Towns, who hails from nearby New Jersey, from the Minnesota Timberwolves less than three weeks before the start of the season. The trade cost them precious depth in three-time All-Star forward Julius Randle and guard Donte DiVincenzo. It left them with a new-look lineup featuring another offseason addition in Mikal Bridges and with little time to build chemistry.
But the Knicks saw an opportunity to add a generational talent in Towns — the self-proclaimed best-shooting big man of all time — and they struck.
And it’s paying dividends.
Towns’ 24.3 points per game lead the Knicks, as do his 12.8 rebounds. He is shooting 55.6% (20-36) from 3-point range through eight games.
Friday marked Towns’ seventh consecutive double-double and his third 30-point scoring effort of the season. He scored 44 points in the Knicks’ 116-107 win in Miami on Oct. 30.
And while a lopsided score in the second half of Friday’s win prevented Towns from challenging his Knicks scoring high – he checked out for good with 8:23 left in the fourth quarter – New York’s newest star delivered once again.
