Minnesota Sports Forum

AbeVigodaLive wrote: ↑Mon Sep 30, 2024 1:23 pm Karl Anthony Towns was not always a fun player to root for. Maybe a bit corny. An uneven playoff performer. A guy who seemed full of empty platitudes. And then there were the truly maddening things on the court... like how he led the league in offensive fouls EVERY season... and often in hilarious fashion. A lot of it is on him... part of it was from a ridiculously bad whistle. I'll always remember the play from last season vs. the Knicks where a Knicks player crashes into the player guarding Towns... and yet they still called the foul on Towns. Now granted, Towns WAS going to charge into the guy (LOL) but he didn't even get the chance to do it.

Towns was also a true NBA talent. Arguably, the best three-point shooting big. Ever. But he was more than that. He could score in the post. Hell, he could score from anywhere. He was a willing and capable passer. And he put in effort on defense.

But none of that will be what was most memorable about Towns in Minnesota. Consider...
... another modern NBA player who spent nearly a decade with one team who NEVER complained publicly despite...

- Joins 66 loss team (worst franchise in NBA history... and this is objectively true).
- Coach, GM and part owner dies unexpectedly within a couple of months.
- The Timberwolves had FIVE head coaches and SEVEN GMs during Towns' first 7 years with the team.
- The Wolves bring in Tom Thibodeau. Towns takes a backseat... willingly... the team breaks a 17 year playoff drought. The next offseason... Jimmy Butler goes ballistic. He rips everyone in the organization to force his way out, primarily Towns. Thibodeau SIDES WITH Butler. Towns never says anything negative about Butler, Thibs or the organization.
- The Wolves bring in Gobert... his rival and a guy whose inclusion on the All NBA team over Towns cost Towns about $30M the previous season. It's a wonky fit. BUT... it's Towns who accommodates Gobert more than anyone else on the team. He changes positions. He talks glowingly about Gobert. And he's the one guy who passes to Gobert more than anyone else. Towns never complains publicly.
- While this is happening, Edwards ascends to stardom. He takes over the team, on the court, in the stat sheet, publicly... and with media pundits. He's the darling of the NBA. Meanwhile, nearly every time Edwards is praised by the talking heads... Towns gets ripped. Towns never complains.
- The Wolves get good. Finally. Towns remains out of position. But he again leads the team in passing to Gobert. Then, he gets injured. Then, Towns returns from injury before he's ready, risking his balky knee, for the playoff run. Edwards gets most of the credit... until they lose to Dallas when Towns gets most of the blame. Towns never complains publicly.
- Towns gets traded for money reasons.

I won't miss Towns playing basketball too much. (I'm a fan of guards anyway.) I won't miss the "corniness." I won't miss the predictability of his stupid basketball decisions. I won't miss the uneven playoff performances.

But damn... he should receive more credit than what he's been given for his role in making Timberwolves basketball credible again... by largely not being an asshole when so so so many NBA stars have acted out for so so so much less.

I hope he does well in New York. Because he seems (at least in relation to m/billionaire athletes) like a pretty decent dude.