The Knicks and the Kings faced off tonight at Madison Square Garden. During the first quarter of the game, Karl-Anthony Towns went viral after unsuccessfully trying to post up Russell Westbrook inside the paint.
But the 18-year NBA veteran did not budge, withstood the physicality to hold his ground, and forced a turnover from Towns, who struggled to physically compete with Westbrook underneath the rim.
WESTBROOK LOCKING UP TOWNS. 😤
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) January 28, 2026
After the Kings broke away in transition, Westbrook had some words and gestures for Towns, nodding his head as if the Knicks star made the wrong decision inside the paint.
NBA fans saw this on social media and began criticizing Karl-Anthony Towns for being “soft.” Some Knicks fans also came to his defense, but some Knicks fans also urged the front office to trade him.
“KAT’s gotta be the softest big man ever.”
“Russ clamped him up! Still got that fire at 37 🔥.”
“This is embarrassing.”
“KAT is weak asf.”
“Got benched in the 4th quarter, and we went on 18 point run to close out the game plz just trade him out, he’s a net negative in every aspect.”
“KAT is so soft.”
“Towns is sorry as f**k.”
Multiple reactions like this flooded the internet as the Kings managed to keep the game intense until the end of the third quarter (tied at 72-72). Fans reminded Towns how playing in the post seems like his weakness.
Time to add to the list 🤣🤣🤣 pic.twitter.com/vNQ55uWbW8
— Lou (@_iamlougotti) January 28, 2026
But the Knicks got the last laugh as a 31-15 disparity in the fourth quarter allowed the Knicks to win this game 103-87. However, it is noteworthy that this outburst in the fourth quarter was not courtesy of Karl-Anthony Towns but Jalen Brunson.
Brunson scored 11 of his 28 points in the fourth quarter, without missing a single shot down the stretch. Meanwhile, Towns struggled to find any consistency tonight, leading to Mike Brown limiting his minutes tonight.
The Knicks center finished the game with 17 points, 11 rebounds, and four assists while shooting 5-15 from the field (33.3 FG%) and 3-8 from beyond the arc (37.5 3P%).
Following the game, Mike Brown explained why he limited Karl-Anthony Towns’ minutes tonight when asked why they have been going down over the last three games.
“At the end of the game, we had a group on the floor that was playing well. It’s a tight ballgame, so I rode that group to the end of the game. We needed to get the win,” justified Brown.
Towns saw this comment from his head coach and responded to the Knicks’ media scrum in the locker room.
“[Mike Brown] saw what he saw. We’ve got to win. That’s the most important thing. That’s all I care about, New York cares about, this team cares about – is wins,” Towns replied.
The Knicks improved to 28-18 following tonight’s win. They are now headed to Toronto to face the Raptors tomorrow on the second night of a back-to-back set of games.
Meanwhile, the Kings extended their losing streak to six consecutive games (three at home, three on the road). They are now 12-36 for the season and will face the 76ers in Philadelphia on Thursday (January 29).
