Minnesota Sports Today

Minnesota Sports News Continuously Updated

Karl-Anthony Towns Set to Return After Missing 51 Games

by

The Minnesota Timberwolves should be getting some reinforcements as they push for a play-in spot. Their star big man, Karl-Anthony Towns (KAT), is ready to return after missing 51 games due to a grade three calf strain. The team expects him to be ready to play against the Atlanta Hawks Wednesday night. Towns suffered a set-back in his recovery process back in January while rehabbing. However, with nine games left in the Timberwolves’ regular season, Karl-Anthony Towns will be a welcome sight for this young team scrapping and clawing to earn a play-in spot.

Karl-Anthony Towns Ready to Return

Karl-Anthony Towns: His Importance to the Minnesota Timberwolves

While Anthony Edwards may be the player of the future, Towns is still the premier center for the Timberwolves. Before his injury, the former Kentucky product was putting up numbers of 20.8 points, a career-best 5.3 assists per game, and 8.2 total rebounds per game. Not to mention, he is arguably the best shooting big man in the NBA.

Remember, he has won a three-point shootout at All-Star Weekend and was striking it from beyond the arc at a rate of 41.0 percent in the 74 games he played in last year. His ability to stretch the floor will be a welcome sight for the Timberwolves and another wrinkle to their offense that opponents will have to take into consideration. This will especially open drive and kick opportunities for the two-man game of KAT and Anthony Edwards. With this in mind, the Minnesota Timberwolves have a legitimate shot at making a late push for the play-in tournament now.

KAT’s Career

Karl-Anthony Towns was once heralded as arguable the best center in the game and for good reason. He is still a top-five player at this position. For his career, Towns is averaging 23.1 points, 1.3 blocks, 11.2 total rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game. He also possesses a career effective field goal percentage of 57.7 percent. The three-time All-Star has been an important player throughout his whole career, especially for Minnesota.

Even with trade rumors swirling around him the past couple of years, KAT has consistently been an All-Star caliber player capable of putting up huge numbers night in and night out. While the experiment of him playing him alongside Rudy Gobert in the post has not quite panned out, the dynamic duo he has formed with Anthony Edwards cannot be ignored. As a result, the Timberwolves have a legitimate chance to sneak into not just the play-in tournament, but the playoffs now as well.

 

NBA Betting Guides [2023]

 

The post Karl-Anthony Towns Set to Return After Missing 51 Games appeared first on The Sports Daily.