The Karl-Anthony Towns trade is easily going to go down as one of the strangest deals made in NBA history.
READ MORE: Trade grades from the deal between the Knicks, Timberwolves and Hornets.
Trades are not a rarity in the NBA, but certain types of trades are. We rarely ever see three-team deals. The even more rare four-team deal is possible, but exceedingly improbable. There are usually just too many moving parts to make that happen. For it to get done, all sides have to really want it to get done.
But what I’m pretty sure we’ve never seen in the NBA is a trade between…leagues? And, technically, a trade between continents, too.
That’s what the Karl-Anthony Towns deal is.
Wait, what? Remind me of the details again
The trade is officially done, according to reporting from The Athletic’s Shams Charania. It took some juice to get this over the finish line.
The Knicks get:
- Karl-Anthony Towns
- The draft rights to James Nnaji
The Timberwolves get:
- Julius Randle
- Donte DiVincenzo
- Keita Bates-Diop
- A protected 2025 1st round pick
The Hornets get:
- DaQuan Jeffries
- Charlie Brown Jr.
- Duane Washington Jr.
- Three future 2nd round picks
- $7.2 million in cash
There are a lot of moving parts there, naturally, considering how many teams there are.
So, where does the international stuff come in?
I’m glad you asked. It all stems from one player involved in the deal: Duane Washington Jr.
Typically, Washington’s inclusion in a deal like this would be fairly inconsequential. He’s included in the deal as mere salary-cap filler. The Knicks included him as a sign-and-trade piece to the Hornets to ensure that they wouldn’t need to include a key rotational piece in Miles (aka Deuce) McBride.
There was one big complication, though. Washington doesn’t play in the NBA anymore. He plays for KK Partizan in Serbia.
Wait, what? The Knicks traded a dude who CURRENTLY plays in Serbia?
YES. Exactly. That’s where this thing gets weird.
As far as the NBA is concerned, the Knicks still held Washington’s rights because he played for the team on a two-way deal last season and the league doesn’t acknowledge non-NBA contracts when considering a player’s free agency status. So he was still eligible to be part of a sign-and-trade deal.
The problem is he’s under contract and has already played in a couple of games for Partizan this year.
how tf does this work?! duane washington jr has already played twice for partizan in serbia this month lol https://t.co/OB0uzeVecT
— Canzhi (@canzhiye) October 2, 2024
So, basically, for the trade to work, Washington had to get out of his deal with Partizan and become a Knick for a day to eventually become a Hornet for a day and then get waived.
So…how did they make this work?
The process was pretty convoluted. Washington had to get a letter of clearance to get out of his deal with Partizan and be free to sign his new deal with the Knicks.
Here’s Sportrac’s Keith Smith on the nitty gritty.
“So, in order to be signed-and-traded by the Knicks to the Hornets, Washington had to get a LOC from FIBA that says he’s free and clear from his contract with Partizan. Then, to re-sign with Partizan after clearing waivers from Charlotte, Washington has to get another LOC from FIBA.
All of that takes time. No matter how much the Hornets and Washington might want to set him free, there’s still a 48-hour waiver period in the NBA. And that’s if the FIBA LOC process is expedited very quickly.”
With the process underway, Washington may be away from Partizan for about a week. Smith says it’s possible he could return on October 6, but it’s more likely that he’ll be back for a EuroLeague game against Real Madrid on October 10.
Either way, Partizan is walking away from this with an undisclosed amount of cash from the NBA side in a contract buyout, and Washington will walk away with a solid $2.3 million for signing his name a couple times here and there on the inside. That’s a pretty sweet pot for them both.
Wow. This is unreal
Yet again, it’s more masterful work from Leon Rose and the Knicks front office to make sure this happens.
The team made big moves to bring in star players and, they hope, compete for championships this season. These moves were shrewd and calculated. It’s pretty unprecedented stuff.
Shake Milton, Mamadi Diakite, DaQuan Jeffries, Charlie Brown Jr., and Duane Washington will make a combined $11.1 million in 2024-25.
Incredibly, New York was able to manufacture the $11 million in salary necessary to consummate trades for Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns. https://t.co/idP2NcDgay
— Tommy Beer (@TommyBeer) October 2, 2024
Knicks fans, you’ve got one of the best front offices in the league. Cherish these moments. If anyone knows what the other side is like, it’s you.