​Mike Brown admits he challenged Karl-Anthony Towns to step up in the Knicks’ first win originally appeared on The Sporting News.
Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.After winning the 2026 NBA championship, the expectations were high for the New York Knicks. Unfortunately for the Knicks, they had a sluggish start to the 2026-27 season when they lost their first three games of the campaign.On Tuesday night, the Knicks had a tough matchup against the undefeated Detroit Pistons. Thankfully for the Knicks’ fans, the team stepped up, especially with Karl-Anthony Towns, who had a phenomenal game.Karl-Anthony Towns stepped up to Mike Brown’s challengeThe Knicks only had a slim 51-50 lead after the first half. At halftime, Towns only had eight points and nine rebounds, but he managed to step up in the second half. Towns ended up finishing the game with 27 points and 20 rebounds.It was one of the most dominant displays in the second half, and Brown made sure to point out that it was a concerted effort from Towns. The All-Star center was the best player on the floor, as he had something to prove in that second half.MORE: Mike Brown gives a reality check for the Knicks’ 0-3 startBrown was ecstatic with what he saw from Towns because it showed the Knicks’ center’s biggest strengths. A motivated Towns is one of the scariest players to go up against, and the Pistons had to find that out the hard way.”I just told him the truth. ‘KAT (Paul Reed) is killing us on the glass, and when he gets a rebound, he’s putting it back. If he gets on the perimeter, guard him.’ And he did those things,” Brown said about KAT’s standout second half against the Pistons.Brown made a great point because Paul Reed had 15 points and 5 rebounds at halftime. With the realization that his matchup was playing so well, Towns was motivated to cement the Knicks’ 111-97 victory.More NBA news:Mike Brown reveals the plan for Dalton Knecht as the two-way contract player for the KnicksJalen Brunson takes accountability for the Knicks’ 0-3 startKarl-Anthony Towns gets a contract extension timeline updateMitchell Robinson gives a funny reason behind him not watching the Knicks’ ring ceremonyThe Knicks used championship rings to bait employees into clicking phishing links