NBA trade grades: Knicks, Timberwolves shake up East with KAT, Randle blockbuster

Right before the start of training camp, the New York Knicks and Minnesota Timberwolves have made a blockbuster trade.

According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the Timberwolves and Knicks have agreed to a trade that sends star Karl Anthony Towns to New York for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo.

Although this trade came as somewhat of a surprise, Randle's future with the Knicks was already starting to become unclear as the franchise seemed unwilling to offer the veteran a long-term contract extension worth up to $181.5 million over four years.

While Randle looked like a All-NBA star in the regular season, he often struggled in the playoffs leaving Jalen Brunson to his lonesome.

DiVincenzo on the other hand was a bright spot for New York as the wing's 15.5 points per game and crafty three-point shooting helped the Knicks get to the second round last season. The former Villanova student-athlete is no star by any means but he spaces the floor with his 40 percent shooting from three.

Finally, Towns seemed to be on his way out of Minnesota as the Timberwolves appeared to have no interest in paying the luxury tax. The franchise has flirted with paying the tax but an ownership battle that has no ending in sight has made it unclear.

Towns looked like absolute star this season averaging 21.8 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. However, the big man seemed to be the odd man out if the franchise decided to avoid paying the luxury tax. The front office traded a load of picks for Rudy Gobert and Anthony Edwards looks like a future top-five player in the league.

While the trade details still need to be somewhat worked out for financial reasons, the basis of the trade package is Towns, Donte DiVincenzo, Julius Randle and DaQuan Jeffries.

Karl-Anthony Towns trade grades for Knicks and Timberwolves

Minnesota Timberwolves trade grade: B-

While the Timberwolves likely didn't make the worst trade of all time here, the franchise didn't do themselves any favors by trading for Randle.

Yes, the power forward could look nice with Anthony Edwards and Rudy Gobert but the squad was unable to land two or three quality rotation veterans on good salaries.

While Minnesota did land a solid possible starter in Donte DiVincenzo, they are set to face the same issue that they did with Towns by trading for Randle.

In all reality, the Timberwolves traded KAT because the squad was looking to lower their luxury tax bill, which doesn't speak much to their ambitions.

Knicks trade grade: A-

This trade is a slam dunk for the New York Knicks who are able to land the second superstar needed to pair with Jalen Brunson for a title run.

Yes, Mikal Bridges can be considered a two-way star in this league but the Villanova forward has yet to show himself as an elite offensive option.

Towns, on the other hand, has showcased himself as the guy for Minnesota and will likely be able to do so for the Knicks.

While the franchise did have to give up Donte DiVincenzo in the deal as well, New York has landed the piece that is needed for the franchise to actually challenge the Boston Celtics this season.

New York Knicks fans will no longer be able to watch fan-favorites Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo play for their squad. Still, the franchise is likely in a much better spot to have their first championship parade since the 1970s after trading for the second offensive All-NBA veteran to compete with Boston.

While the franchise does likely lose a lot of their perimeter defense with this move, the squad likely just became on par with the Celtics for this season.