In theory, the New York Knicks should be living the high life right now.
They should be celebrating their first championship in over 50 years, and they should be bringing back every veteran they can after their team gelled so nicely in the regular and postseason. That's what should be happening, but instead, team owner James Dolan is beefing with his team's second-best player to save a few bucks.
Karl-Anthony Towns is eligible for a five-year, $276 million contract. While the Knicks have succeeded in the past in duping their stars into signing massively undercut deals, Towns is unwilling to take a pay cut in the vicinity of $80 million.
Additionally, any holdup in negotiation with KAT leads to a similar stay of discussions with forward Josh Hart, who similarly wants an extension.
What that leads to is the Knicks having the vibes of a very dreary team coming into training camp even after winning their title. If the Knicks can't get everything back together and continue to disrespect Towns, it stands to reason that the East is wide open for the Indiana Pacers to attempt to climb back up to the top of the conference.
The East has rocketed ahead
The Pacers are not the only team challenging to move up in the ranks.
The Philadelphia 76ers traded for Jaylen Brown and signed LeBron James in an offseason that some are calling one of the best of all time (they absolutely should not be, but still). The Atlanta Hawks have added some veterans that improve their already tenacious defense, along with owning more than enough picks to make a larger move.
Truthfully, there are 10 teams in the Eastern Conference that are hoping to be a top-four seed. The Toronto Raptors will be good. The Orlando Magic will be good. The Boston Celtics will be good. The Miami Heat, the Detroit Pistons, and the Cleveland Cavaliers will all be good.
And yet, the Indiana Pacers are surely excited to see one of their rivals falling apart. They have their own issues to work on internally, but any outside help is awesome.
Now, this is not to say that the Knicks can't compartmentalize and can't figure something out behind their still-strong core that features a top-10 player. What it does mean, however, is that any leg up the Pacers can get is a good one to have.
Towns in specific is a bad loss for the Knicks if they can't get him back on the court, especially after losing center Mitchell Robinson to the Celtics this offseason. The Knicks' depth in big men is already depleted, and losing the only real playable center they have is an idiotic choice.
Still, when it comes to the Pacers and the Knicks, any idiotic choice New York makes is surely met with cheers in Indiana.
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