Karl-Anthony Towns and the New York Knicks narrowly avoided embarrassment during a 93-92 win over the shorthanded Brooklyn Nets on Friday. Despite playing against a rotation consisting primarily of rookies, two-way players and two-day signees, Mike Brown's team struggled against Brooklyn's aggressive defense for most of the game.
Towns and Jalen Brunson recovered from a slow start to hold off a Brooklyn comeback in the final minutes. After the matchup, the Nets extended forward Josh Minot said brooklyn tried to make Towns are becoming uncomfortable with their increasing physicality.
“I played with Kat for two and a half years [in Minnesota]. this is how i know her [the back of my hand]And she doesn't like physicality," Minot said. "I like Kat, but she doesn't like physicality. He is also my boy. I hope this makes him angry. But we were really involved in bringing that physicality to it. He started flamboyantly in the second half. He is a really talented player. But we were going to do everything in our power to stop him.”
When Josh Minott was asked about defending him tonight he said that Karl-Anthony Towns "doesn't like physicality":
"I played with Kat for 2.5 years. I know him that way, and he doesn't like physicality. I like Kat, but he doesn't like physicality. He's my guy too. I hope this angers him." pic.twitter.com/tNKGojrHpY
- Eric Slater (@erikslater_) 21 March 2026
After a scoreless first quarter, in which the Knicks scored only 14 points, Towns found his rhythm late and led New York to a narrow victory.
Karl-Anthony Towns bounces back from rough start during Knicks' close win over Nets
He finished with 26 points and 15 rebounds on 7-16 shooting from the field and 11-13 shooting from the free-throw line. Meanwhile, Minot led Brooklyn with a team-high 22 points on 8 of 13 shooting from the field and 6 of 9 from three.
Towns has struggled to replicate his production from last season during the Knicks' irregular 2025-26 campaign. He is averaging 20.1 points and 11.9 rebounds on .491/.365/.851 shooting splits in 66 appearances.
The All-Star big man is adept at drawing fouls on drives, attempting a career-high 9.0 free throws per 100 possessions. However, he has struggled to transition around the rim. According to CleaningTheGlass, Towns shot a career-low 60 percent from within four feet, which is the NBA's worst percentage among Big 20 players who have played more than 1,700 minutes this season.
As the regular season winds down, the Knicks are attempting to catch the Boston Celtics for the Eastern Conference second seed. The five-game winning streak has pulled New York to within two games of Boston with 12 games remaining.
