Towns has had to shift his role but it's paying dividends for New York.
The New York Knicks rolled past the Indiana Pacers 136-110 on Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden, and Karl-Anthony Towns had plenty to say about his evolving place on this roster.
Towns finished with 22 points, 11 rebounds, three steals, and a block in the win, recording yet another double-double while doing a little bit of everything for a Knicks team that continues to find ways to win even when the lineup looks different on any given night.
After the game, Towns opened up about what this season has looked like for him on a personal level and how he has adjusted to doing whatever the team needs from him.
"I've been asked to take a different role this year and I'm glad I'm impacting winning and maximizing and being the star of my role," Towns said. "Just doing whatever our team needs to be the best version of ourselves."
A Different Version of KAT
That mindset shift has been a big part of New York's success this season, and it shows up in how Towns approaches the game on both ends of the floor.
Under first-year head coach Mike Brown, Towns has gone from being a primary scorer on the Minnesota Timberwolves to playing a more complementary role alongside Jalen Brunson in New York, and this season has asked him to evolve even further with new offensive schemes and rotations that look nothing like what he ran under Tom Thibodeau.
Towns is averaging 20.0 points, 11.8 rebounds, and 2.9 assists per game this season, numbers that still rank among the best big men in the league while reflecting a willingness to take a step back from the spotlight if it means the team wins more games.
Tuesday's game was a perfect example of that because Brunson was ruled out with ankle and neck soreness, and instead of forcing things, Towns let the game come to him while the rest of the roster stepped up around him.
Josh Hart Steals the Show
The biggest beneficiary of the balanced approach on Tuesday was Josh Hart, who put together one of the most efficient performances you will see all season and scored a season-high 33 points on 12-of-13 shooting, including a perfect 5-for-5 from three-point range.
OG Anunoby added 26 points and eight rebounds while Jose Alvarado chipped in 16 points and 10 assists off the bench, giving the Knicks exactly the kind of team-wide effort that Towns has been preaching about all year.
New York dished out 38 assists as a team and shot 54 percent from the field, turning the game into a blowout by the fourth quarter when the lead ballooned to 27 points.
Looking Ahead
The Knicks now sit at 45-25 on the season and hold the third seed in the Eastern Conference behind the Detroit Pistons and Boston Celtics, with 12 games remaining on the schedule.
For Towns, the numbers might not jump off the page the way they did during his peak years in Minnesota, but the Knicks do not need him to be that player right now.
They need him to be exactly who he has been this season, someone who grabs 11 rebounds, sets the tone defensively, knocks down open shots, and lets everyone else thrive around him.
If this version of Karl-Anthony Towns is what shows up in the playoffs, the Knicks are going to be a tough out for anyone in the East.