PHILADELPHIA — Karl-Anthony Towns’ transformation has been remarkable.
He recorded 10 more assists in the Knicks’ 144-114 Game 4 bludgeoning of the 76ers on Sunday to finish their series sweep.
Nine of those assists came in the 16 minutes he played in the first half.
His final total could have been much higher, but he only needed to play four minutes in the second half.
Sunday marked the third time this postseason that Towns has reached double digits in assists.
In the regular season, he did it just once.
It is part of a dramatic change the Knicks made ahead of Game 4 of the first round, operating their offense through Towns at the elbow and allowing him to facilitate with the four others on the court cutting and setting screens around him.
That change has unlocked the best version of the Knicks.
“Shout out to our team,” Towns said. “We found a way to, in a way, stabilize our season and do what was needed to adjust to Atlanta. And [we] found ourselves in a better position. It’s a shout-out to the coaching staff for realizing adjustments that needed to be made and also [a] shout-out to me personally that they trusted me.”
The Knicks played it cautiously with OG Anunoby.
It proved to be a wise decision.
Anunoby (right hamstring strain) was out for the second straight game Sunday.
He is still considered day to day, and the Knicks have been optimistic that he won’t miss much time.
Imaging revealed that it is a “very minor” strain, noti.group’s Stefan Bondy previously reported.
But with a 3-0 series lead, the Knicks didn’t feel the need to rush him back Sunday.
Now, he has another week of rest before playing again.
Miles McBride, for the second straight game, started in Anunoby’s place and erupted for 25 points.
Knicks fans regularly jeered Joel Embiid with “F–k Embiid” chants throughout the series.
He spoke about that experience — and having his son hear those chants — after Game 4.
“We go on the road, they’re chanting,” Embiid said. “I hate that he hears that, but he has to understand that that’s the way the world is, and you’ve just got to live and understand that there’s going to be negativity, there’s going to be positivity, but you’ve got to go through it, and it’s OK.”
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
