Karl-Anthony Towns saves Knicks’ season with the best playoff moment of his career

Karl-Anthony Towns’ career has been a study in contrast—every peak seems followed by a stumble. He helped the Timberwolves topple the Nuggets last year, only to shoot the Knicks into a hole in the first three games of this year’s Eastern Conference Finals. Game 1 saw him drop 35 points, then get targeted and benched in Game 2. That inconsistency defines the Towns experience: flashes of brilliance clouded by lapses in judgment or effort.

In Game 3 against Indiana, Towns had just four points, four fouls, and four turnovers through three quarters. It looked bleak—until the fourth. With Jalen Brunson and Deuce McBride in foul trouble, Delon Wright stepped in, and suddenly, the offense ran through Towns. He scored 20 in the final quarter, flipping a 10-point deficit into a six-point win.

It wasn’t his best game, but perhaps his most important moment. For all the fouls, defensive lapses, and inconsistency, Towns showed why the Knicks gave up major assets and a max contract to get him.

Towns spins a roulette wheel every night. But on Sunday, it landed on greatness—just in time to keep the Knicks alive. The Pacers were headed to the Finals… until they weren’t. If that’s the price of having Towns, at least on this night, it was worth it.