During an interview with ESPN, Malika Andrews (Link to video on Twitter), Nix a great man Karl-Anthony Towns confirmed that he would “probably” be willing to take less than his maximum salary on a contract extension.
“I want this team to stay together” Horadki said. “That was always my top priority, was to keep everybody here, to keep that core, that special team that we have. So that was the first thing on my mind as soon as (extension talks started). I didn’t even think about the max.”
Before the Knicks announced that they were contract negotiations with their extension-eligible players, their offer for Towns was in the $50 million-a-year range. The maximum six-time All-Star would be worth $276 million over four seasons ($69 million per year).
Here’s more from the Atlantic:
- Nix head coach Mike Brown showed throughout last season that he was willing to experiment with different lineup combinations and defensive coverages, and that was the case again in New York’s season-opening loss to Philadelphia. Fred Katz of The Athletic. After Towns picked up two quick fouls early in the first quarter, Brown found himself at backup center Andre Drummond 14 straight minutes is more than the burly veteran is used to at this point in his career. The 33-year-old has been very productive during that stretch, notching a double-double with three assists, but he noticeably eased off in the second half. “You could say it’s like trial and error“, Jalen Brunson said of Brown. “He’s not afraid to go out there and just try something and if something doesn’t work, we’ll figure something out. But he is always ready to look for suggestions, to look for help and to find out what is the best way to really prepare the team.”
- Kawhi Leonard continues to ramp up his activity this fall after an offseason in which he spent extended time in limbo amid uncertainty over whether (and when) he would be traded to the Predatorstrans Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. Although the 35-year-old forward wasn’t at his best in Wednesday’s season opener, shooting just 5-of-17 from the field, he still had 23 points, six rebounds, four steals, two assists and a block in 24 minutes in Toronto’s 43-point win over Chicago. “I ain’t got no goals (when he figures it out)” said Leonard.Greatness cannot be rushed. Whenever I can promote medical things and feel great, whatever numbers they’re looking at, that’s when the time will come. But I’m just happy to be out there and do the best I can with the minutes I have.”
- New Celtics center Mitchell Robinson appreciates this head coach Joe Mazzula encouraged him to move after Tuesday a disappointing season opener in detroit but he knows he has to be much better going forward like Jay King of The Athletic writes. “I use it as fuel” said Robinson.Kind of should. I mean, we got beat last game. How big, you can’t let that happen.Mazzula called the 28-year-old big man “a very important part of what we do,” but acknowledged that it will likely take some time for Robinson to adjust to the new offensive system.
- The Celtics will accept Nix for their home opener on Friday, but Robinson said he’s not focused on the matchup against his longtime former team, King added in the same story. “It doesn’t really matter much” said Robinson, who spent his first eight years in New York before signing with Boston as a free agent.It’s more just trying to recover from what happened two nights ago.” The Celtics were outscored by 22 points in the second half on Tuesday, and Robinson had just four points and three rebounds in 18 minutes.
Luke Adams contributed to this post.
