Knicks' Karl-Anthony Towns Gets Into Heated Exchange Against Suns

During‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌ the final moments of the fourth quarter, the atmosphere inside Madison Square Garden was so tense that it almost exploded when Karl-Anthony Towns was called for his fourth personal foul after hitting Dillon Brooks' face with his right hand.

Because of the contact, the two players instantly got into a scuffle and exchanged words, while the referees had to separate them to resume the game after a short ‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌break.

As‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌ the Suns held a 93-87 advantage with only 6:38 to go, the Knicks really needed their $220 million center to be playing.

Jan 17, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks center/forward Karl-Anthony Towns (32) posts up against Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) during the second half at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images | John Jones-Imagn Images

However, rather than helping them become more efficient on the court, the situation so annoyed Towns that he went to the bench, showing his frustration as he slowly walked to the sideline.

The‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌ conflict was the last straw that caused the Knicks to suffer another defeat at home as they lost 106-99 to Phoenix on Saturday night. Towns' failure to remain calm when under pressure has been a troubling trend, and it is now the reason why New York is losing important ‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌games.

KAT & Dillon Brooks get into it early pic.twitter.com/NEToeAXEYl
— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) January 18, 2026

KAT's Costly Miss After Brooks Incident

Towns‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌ finally got back to the game at 4:33, having his team only down by 98-90, but in his absence, the damage was already done. When Towns was on the bench, the Suns had increased their lead and the Knicks' offense without their main scorer in the paint was ‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌disoriented.

However,‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌ the final stab was delivered with 53 seconds left in the game. At the time, the score was 104-97 in favor of the Suns, and Towns had a completely uncovered three-point shot to reduce the Suns' lead to only four points and, thus, the Knicks would have had a real shot at a comeback. He airballed it. The crowd at Madison Square Garden, who were already tired of countless weeks of underwhelming performances, burst out in boos.

It was a savage moment that basically summed up all that had been wrong with Towns' recent performances: bad shot decisions, no self-belief, and not being able to come up with crucial plays in clutch ‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌moments.

He finished with 23 points, but his five personal fouls and one technical foul tell the real story of a player who let his emotions derail his performance.

The‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌ fight between Brooks and Towns didn't lead to Towns' struggles; it just revealed them. His anger, which he openly admitted was "a lot" after the game, is that of a player who is aware he is not playing well but doesn't know how to get out of that ‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌situation.

Make sure you bookmark Knicks on SI for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!