Highlighting Karl-Anthony Towns’ Defensive Lapses, Tim Bontemps Shuts Down Idea of Knicks Beating Celtics and Cavaliers

Karl-Anthony Towns has been a welcome boost to the Knicks, with his offensive abilities. But his defense (or lack thereof) leaves a lot to be desired. Towns has been a liability on the business end of the floor, and analyst Tim Bontemps doesn’t think he’ll be able to help the Knicks get past the Celtics or the Cavaliers in the playoffs.

Speaking on ESPN’s Get Up, Bontemps trashed the Knicks’ chances at a round 2 underdog story. Sure, he does believe they’ll make it past round 1, but he does not think they stand a chance against either of the two top sides in the East.

While the ESPN analyst did praise KAT’s effect on the Knicks’ offense, he also pointed out his defensive frailties and claimed that the Knicks’ current 0-5 record against the Cavs and the Celtics would make things difficult for them in the postseason.

“Nope, no chance at all,” he said dismissively. “We just saw Karl Towns, incredible offensive player. His issues defensively in particular are a huge problem against the spacing the Celtics have, and I just don’t see a way.”

He did also mention the nature of their losses to the Celtics. They’re 0-3 against the reigning champs, and none of the games were even a contest. The Cs won by a combined margin of 57 points over three games and are still scheduled for another game on the 8th of April.

Karl-Anthony Towns’ defensive playoff struggles were on display last year, as he got into foul trouble in every game he played in the Timberwolves’ Western Conference Finals run. In fact, it got so bad that his teammate at the time, Anthony Edwards, even chastised him in the media.

While some may call Bontemps’ words harsh, he’s not the only person who’s pessimistic about the Knicks’ chances against top teams. Chandler Parsons took it one step further on Run It Back, and said that, unless fully healthy, the Knicks would have a tough time even making it out of round 1.

“People were saying the New York Knicks, on paper, had the best roster going into this season,” the former Maverick said. “They had so much championship hopes… they’re gonna have a tough time getting out of the first round, let alone competing for a championship.”

He emphasized the importance of health for the Knicks, implying that Tom Thibodeau’s habit of overplaying his starters may come back to bite them. Jalen Brunson is already missing some time after picking up an ankle injury against the Lakers last week.

New York also had problems with health during last year’s playoff run, with injuries to Mitchell Robinson, Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby to contend with.