DETROIT — Three months into the current season, Karl-Anthony Towns is still grappling with the transition to Mike Brown’s approach.
In a disappointing game against the Pistons on Monday, Towns managed to score only six points, marking the fourth instance where he has failed to hit double digits this season. Comparatively, he had just one such outing last season, which had a considerably larger sample size.
“The system is different,” Towns reflected. “That’s a little different.”
It’s “different,” but not in a good way for Towns’ stats. He’s taking significantly fewer shots and his conversion rate has plummeted compared to last season under coach Tom Thibodeau.
“The biggest adjustment is for me. Like Mike said, I’m making the biggest sacrifice,” he noted. “We really need to think about our identity. We’ve got a long flight ahead and practice tomorrow, so we need to figure out how to get ourselves back on the right path.”
Following the disappointing game, Towns is averaging 21.5 points and shooting 47 percent overall, with 35.6 percent from three-point range. Last season, his averages were 24.4 points on 52.6 percent shooting overall, and 42 percent from beyond the arc.
Interestingly, Towns wasn’t the lowest performer among the Knicks starters on Monday. That distinction fell to OG Anunoby, who scored just five points and has seen his All-Star aspirations dim as a result.
Detroit fans seemed to take particular aim at Jalen Brunson, who trained with them during last season’s playoffs. Every time he got the ball, he was met with boos and chants of “you’re a flopper.”
Brunson faced off against Detroit’s top defender, Orser Thompson, who was relentless. Thompson kept pressure on Brunson, even managing to strip the ball from him twice in the second quarter.
“With my turnovers and our team’s overall turnovers, we’re not setting ourselves up for success offensively,” Brunson said, acknowledging that he was responsible for six of the Knicks’ total 20 turnovers. “We need to cut down on those mistakes.”
Team president Leon Rose, who typically avoids the media spotlight, is reportedly staying with the organization for the long haul, according to owner James Dolan.
“As far as I know, Leon is with us long-term,” Dolan said in a recent WFAN interview. “We’re not discussing an exit; we have a five-year plan in place. It’s really more of a two- or three-year plan now.”
Rose, who became team president right before the pandemic in 2020, has guided the Knicks to playoff appearances in four of his five full seasons, including the team’s first conference finals appearance since 2000.
The details of Rose’s contract remain unclear, but it’s believed he originally inked a five-year deal.
