How does Timberwolves’ Anthony Edwards feel about losing Karl-Anthony Towns to Knicks trade?

It would be fair to say that nobody saw Karl-Anthony Towns’ move to the Big Apple coming. What it means for the Minnesota Timberwolves and the New York Knicks going forward remains to be seen, but rest assured the NBA’s landscape has changed.

Anthony Edwards opens up about losing KAT

If you watched any of the Timberwolves’ games last season, it wouldn’t have taken long for you to appreciate that guard Anthony Edwards and center Karl-Anthony Towns had a special relationship. Indeed, it was with those two players as a base that the team marched all the way to the Western Conference Finals where they finally fell to the Denver Nuggets.

To that end, it was unsurprising to witness Edwards’ heartfelt comments when speaking about Towns’ recent trade to the New York Knicks during the team’s Media Day earlier this week. Edwards explained that he was in fact “hurt” by Towns’ move. “I think everybody knows KAT my brother so that definitely hurt,” Edwards said. “It’s a business. I just gotta roll with it. I’m ready to get to know them [Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo] and try to get it figured out as fast as we can because we trying to get back to where we was and go even farther.” For the purpose of context, Towns - a four-time All-Star - was traded to the Knicks in exchange for a package that included three-time All-Star Julius Randle, guard Donte DiVincenzo, and a protected first-round pick. The Charlotte Hornets were also a part of the deal.

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Curiously, Edwards was also asked if his opinion was considered by the front office prior to Towns’ departure. According to the 23-year-old, it was not, though he admitted that he was on a plane at the time. To be fair to Edwards, one can understand why the situation would be particularly hurtful given that both he and KAT had developed a visibly close relationship on and off the court, one that produced three playoff appearances in the four years that they spent playing together.

It’s also worth noting that Towns himself appeared to be surprised by the deal. Giving further comment, Edwards explained that he communicated with Towns via text messages after his plane landed. “It was incredible,” Edwards said of his relationship with Towns. “That’s what we talked about once I landed. We talked on the phone through messages. We were just talking to each other about everything. How it started. And he sent me a picture of him at the gym at like three in the morning. So that was kind of funny.” Ultimately, both Edwards and Towns are on separate paths now, but by the sounds of it, they’ll always be friends at least when they’re not facing each other on the court as opponents.