Karl-Anthony Towns facing roadblock in Knicks contract extension

The New York Knicks are on top of the world right now, and Karl-Anthony Towns has plenty to do with that.

The former No. 1 pick was lights out for most of the playoffs, averaging a double-double and being instrumental against Victor Wembanyama in the NBA Finals.

However, this is a cruel business, and there are never guarantees about the future.

Towns is eligible for a four-year, $272 million max extension, but it has been pretty quiet on that front. According to The Athletic's James Edwards, history isn't on his side, and he might not get a deal soon — or at least not the one he's hoping for.

The Knicks might not give Towns a max contract extension

“30 years old and big men don’t tend to age well. An extension would carry him past his prime,” Edwards wrote. “Would New York really have this core locked in for another three or four years? That seems unlikely. There’s a world where Towns is the odd man out unless he takes significantly less than the max extension.”

Towns is slated to make $57 million next season, with a $61 million player option for the 2027-28 campaign.

The Knicks would benefit from lowering that number by giving him more money in the long run, but they're also reluctant to get over the second threshold of the salary cap, so this is a tricky situation.

Towns averaged 20.1 points, 11.9 rebounds and three assists per game on 50.1 percent from the floor and 36.8 percent from three-point range last season, per Basketball Reference. 

The Knicks have everything it takes to get back to the Finals, though no team has won back-to-back championships since the 2018 Golden State Warriors, and the financial constraints of the new CBA makes that less likely by the year.