New York Knicks' center Karl-Anthony Towns appeared on Shannon Sharpe's 'Club Shay Shay' podcast and praised Kyrie Irving. Towns is from New Jersey, the same area Kyrie grew up in and reflected on watching Irving grow up before declaring him an NBA legend.
"That's my Jersey dawg. That's my guy. You know what? I've known Kyrie since I was young and I've seen the work he's put into his game. I know everybody goes crazy when he's doing these layups and these drills, but I've seen him doing that since he was young."
"I've seen the hours he's put in, I've seen the work, I've seen the drills. I definitely stole some of those drills so I could improve myself as a player. When you're watching greatness, you study greatness and try to implement it into your game."
"I've got nothing but respect for Kyrie. I've been blessed to watch him when I was young, before the NBA and before Duke. To see where he's at now, in my eyes, he's a legend in the game."
Towns and Irving both come from New Jersey, a state that has created many of the top NBA players right now. KAT's new teammate Jalen Brunson also hails from Jersey, and so do elite big men Bam Adebayo and Jaren Jackson Jr. Naji Marshall, Irving's current teammate on the Mavs is also from New Jersey, and so is Towns' former teammate Naz Reid.
Towns appreciation for Irving isn't unlike what many NBA stars have for the dribbling maestro. They faced off in the Western Conference Finals last season, as Irving's Dallas Mavericks won 4-1 over Towns' Minnesota Timberwolves.
They won't meet in the West Playoffs again after KAT was traded to the Knicks, but there's a realistic possibility that New York and Dallas will meet in the 2025 NBA Finals.
Irving averaged 25.6 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 5.2 assists last season while Towns averaged 21.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 3.0 assists.
The Knicks And Mavericks Would Make For a Fascinating Finals Matchup
It's hard to predict how Conferences will shake out this early in the season, but the Mavs and Knicks will be among the favorites in their respective conferences, opening up the possibility of a very interesting Finals with multiple storylines.
Towns laid out his connection with Irving, which will be a minor storyline at best in this series because of Jalen Brunson. Brunson played his first four seasons with the Mavericks, getting drafted onto the team with Luka Doncic in what might be one of the greatest Draft performances by a franchise.
Brunson would leave the Mavs in 2022 in search of a better role, with the Knicks 'overpaying' him at the time to force the Mavs to make an offer Brunson wasn't going to accept. He's since emerged as an MVP candidate, averaging 28.7 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 6.7 assists last season.
Jalen's departure dropped the Mavericks into the lottery in their first season without him, but it also led to the team acquiring Kyrie and promptly making the 2024 NBA Finals. Doncic has continued to level his game up as well, averaging 33.9 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 9.8 assists last season, and winning the scoring title.
If these teams meet, fireworks are guaranteed, but the journey to get there will be long and arduous.
