Karl-Anthony Towns Rips Mitchell Robinson for Signing With Celtics: ‘He Owes Me a Pickup Truck’
Karl-Anthony Towns cannot get past the jersey.
The Knicks star sat down with The New York Times’ The Interview and did not hold back when the subject of Mitchell Robinson came up. Robinson, who spent his first eight NBA seasons in New York and served as Towns’ primary frontcourt backup, signed a three-year, $47.4 million deal with the Boston Celtics this summer.
Yes, the Celtics. The team the Knicks share a division with. The team the Knicks pass in the tunnel four times a year. The team Robinson is now going to try to beat while wearing green.
Towns’ reaction was pure honesty. “I don’t even know if I could look at Mitch with a Celtics jersey on after everything,” Towns said. “So I’ll just have to start laughing at Mitch when we see each other.” Then he added the line that told you exactly where the two big men stood: “He owes me a pickup truck.”
That is the sound of a guy who is annoyed and amused and betrayed all at once.
You can understand it. Robinson is not just a former teammate. He was Towns’ guy. When Towns got traded to New York in the fall of 2024, Robinson was the Knicks big who welcomed him, backed him up, and protected the rim behind him while setting hard screens for Jalen Brunson. The two were part of the run that turned New York into a real contender.
Now Robinson is a Celtic. Towns has to watch him wear the enemy uniform.
The pickup truck line deserves more attention. Towns did not clarify what the debt was, but that is the kind of inside joke that only exists between actual friends. This is not a Kyrie versus LeBron blood feud brewing. It is two guys who ran together for a couple of seasons and now have to figure out how to punch each other in the face come November.
The bigger context is what this says about the Knicks. Losing Robinson to Boston is a real basketball problem. New York needed frontcourt depth. Robinson was one of the best backup centers in the league and a rim protector Towns depended on when he was in foul trouble. Watching him walk to a conference contender is a rough summer.
The bigger context on Boston is that the Celtics needed a big who could bang, defend, and roll. Robinson is exactly that. On a three-year deal at $47.4 million, that is a bargain for a starting caliber center. Boston is quietly stacking pieces to challenge for the East again.
The bigger context on Towns is what everyone in New York already knows. He is emotional. He wears his feelings on his sleeve. That is part of why fans love him. It is also part of what makes him such a fascinating star. He is not going to give you the corporate athlete answer. He is going to tell you he cannot look at his boy in a Celtics jersey without laughing at him.
That will get real when the Knicks and Celtics tip off for the first time this season. Expect fireworks. Expect Robinson to try to embarrass Towns in the paint. Expect Towns to fire back. Expect Madison Square Garden to lose its mind when Robinson gets introduced.
And expect Towns to keep asking about that pickup truck.
Some feuds are personal. Others are just about pride. This one has a little of both, plus a car payment.
Boston versus New York just got another chapter.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
