While Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic often garners attention in the NBA, former player Austin Rivers argues that the real standout might be the New York Knicks’ Karl-Anthony Towns.
On The Ringer’s social media, Rivers claimed that Towns is the “most skilled” center in the league, suggesting that his skill set surpasses that of the three-time NBA MVP. Rivers pointed out, “[Jokic] can’t shoot like Karl. They aren’t even close in shooting ability… I’m not saying he’s better than Nikola.
Passing is just one aspect… In terms of overall offensive capability, Karl scores better in nearly every category than Nikola, who is an average shooter and three-point shooter.”
Supporting Rivers’ argument, Towns outperforms Jokic in several statistical categories, including career points per game (22.9 to 21.0), rebounds (10.9 to 10.8), blocks (1.3 to 0.7), and three-point shooting percentage (39.9 to 35.3). Towns has bounced back from a slow start, notably scoring a total of 65 points over the last two games, contributing significantly to both Knicks victories. He scored 44 points in a win against Miami, marking one of the highest scores in the current NBA season.
Rivers acknowledged that while Jokic remains the superior overall player, he cautioned against underestimating Towns’ capacity in head-to-head matchups. “I’m not saying he’s the better player—that’s indisputable,” Rivers, a former Knick, clarified. “If you ask them both to go out and score as many points as possible, Karl could potentially outscore him.”
Towns and the Knicks (3-2) are set to face off against Jokic and the Nuggets later this month on the 25th in Denver, with the Knicks playing in Houston on Monday night at 8:45 p.m. ET.