The New York Knicks are looking to save their season Thursday night, but will they have their second-best offensive weapon?
Center Karl-Anthony Towns suffered a left knee contusion late in Tuesday night’s Game 4 loss in the Eastern Conference finals against the Pacers when he crashed knees with Indiana guard Aaron Nesmith.
“I’m only thinking about the loss,” Towns said Tuesday night when asked about the injury. “I’m not thinking about that right now. It’s disappointing when you don’t get a win and we didn’t do enough to get the job done tonight.”
New York, which trails 3-1 in the series, will look to stave off elimination Thursday night at home in Game 5 (8 p.m. ET, TNT).
Here’s everything you need to know about Karl-Anthony Towns’ injured left knee and his playing status for Thursday night in the Eastern Conference finals:
Is Karl-Anthony Towns playing tonight?
Towns will be a game-time decision, Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau told reporters Thursday around an hour-and-a-half before tipoff. At the time that Thibodeau was speaking, Towns was preparing to go through his pre-game warmup and shootaround. How his knee responds will determine his availability.
“He’ll be game-time, yeah,” Thibodeau said before addressing the team’s mindset if Towns would be unable to go. “Next guy get in there, get it done.”
The Knicks officially listed Towns as questionable on Wednesday’s injury report with a left knee contusion.
The five-time All-Star has averaged 25.8 points, 11.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists through four games of the Eastern Conference finals. He had a team-high 24 points in the Knicks’ Game 3 comeback win, when he scored 20 of his 24 in the fourth quarter as the Knicks overcame a 20-point deficit.
How did Karl-Anthony Towns get hurt?
With a little more than two minutes to play in Game 4, Nesmith fielded a pass and then drove to the basket, where he met Towns, who stepped up to help on defense. Nesmith’s right knee crashed into Towns’ left, sending Towns crumpling to the floor in obvious discomfort.
Trainers examined Towns on the bench during a timeout, as he continued to exhibit pain. Eventually, however, Towns would return and would finish the game, something Thibodeau called a “good sign” for his status for Game 5.
Towns, though, labored up the floor following the injury, clearly favoring his left leg. It is an injury to the same knee he had surgery on to repair a torn meniscus during the 2023-24 season when he was with the Minnesota Timberwolves. He missed a month, but was able to return for the playoffs.