Karl-Anthony Towns makes Timberwolves regret trading him

In his first game back in Minnesota since a deal late in the summer sent him to New York, Towns scored 32 points and grabbed 20 rebounds as the Knicks beat Minnesota 133-107. Towns was a perfect 5-for-5 from three-point range and 10-for-12 from the field as New York won for the seventh time in nine games.

After the Wolves reached the Western Conference Finals for only the second time in franchise history, they dramatically shook up their team. They sent Towns, who'd played for Minnesota for nine seasons since they drafted him first overall in 2015, to New York for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo. Randle had 24 points Thursday night, and DiVincenzo scored 15, combining the two to shoot 13-for-26. But they were no match for the potent Knicks offense, ranked second in the NBA. 

Towns and All-Star Jalen Brunson's two-man game is challenging to stop, helping the Knicks score 121 points per 100 possessions on pick-and-pop plays. Defenses must choose between sticking with Towns, who is shooting 46.1 percent on threes, or following Brunson, who is shooting 67.1 percent within three feet of the rim. Thanks to the added spacing, the Knicks are shooting 71 percent at the rim as a team, up from 65.8 percent last season.

On Thursday, Towns tallied six assists. Some of the passes he made found his teammates wide open.

The Timberwolves traded Towns in part to get out of the four years and $220M left on his contract, but they're not getting enough out of their other high-priced big man, Rudy Gobert, who makes $43.8M. The reigning Defensive Player of the Year had three points and four rebounds Thursday, logging a plus/minus of -37 in 22 minutes.

Minnesota still has the NBA's fifth-ranked defense, but they're scoring 3.3 points per game fewer than last season. They're the 21st-ranked offense in the NBA, which isn't going to get them back to the conference finals.

While Randle is averaging 20.2 points, he does not provide the spacing or scoring threat of Towns. DiVincenzo is only shooting 32.5 percent from three-point range. Meanwhile, Gobert's scoring dropped from 3.7 points to 10.3 points per game, and his rebounds dropped from 12.9 to 10.7. This could be a fluke or that Gobert is losing a step at age 32.

With Randle becoming a free agent this summer, the Timberwolves can escape some of their luxury tax concerns. But they also may have inadvertently escaped the group of serious title contenders.