**The Official Karl-Anthony Towns Thread: Part Two**

[minimus]

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[frankenwolf]

As I have said multiple times. I think Towns is still severely underutilized on offense with our current team construction. We still have not figured out how to optimize him and he is just being an ok fit using his talent alone. He doesn't have a defined role that's benefiting him or the team and I think we got exposed by the Mavs for this. He has managed to find role on the defensive end and that need was so great it has managed to propel us to an elite team.

The other major problem is all on Towns and that is his mental mistakes that contribute to his fouling. It is a major detriment to his overall game. If he cut that out it would have a positive impact and his effectiveness would shoot up.

If we can manage to optimize his offense so he is closer to his pre-Rudy self in scoring production (probably means he has to take more three's) and if he can somehow cut these fouls down, that alone would take our team up a step, that fouling part is a big if. I think the offense part can be done but we need the coaching staff to make changes.

I think we are in the "defensive" phase of our roster construction, partly because of the goal of stopping Denver and Connelly understanding how they could be neutralized. But I don't believe this is Connelly's longterm vision for the franchise.

I think this is evidenced by this offseason's moves. I know everyone thinks Towns leaving is inevitable, but I'm not certain. In terms of Minnesota's overall roster construction, I'd argue that Rudy Gobert is the biggest "odd man out" of the big men group.

I can easily see a transition to Gobert moving on and Towns sliding back to the 5, with the team moving to a "five-out" offense. Towns, Naz Reid, Leonard Miller, Luka Garza all fit this offensive mold. Get out and run, taking advantage of transition with weapons like Edwards, Dillingham, McDaniels, Shannon, etc in addition to that big man group that can feast in transition.

It’s interesting from an overall team value.

Towns would be worth more offensively if he was playing center, getting all those match up advantages. It would also open up starter minutes for Naz, which could increase his value as well.

Towns doesn’t get enough credit for improving his major flaws. I never expected him to be an okay defender, but he has put his heart into it. People also dislike Towns whining to the ref, and I believe he had 13 technical fouls two years ago. Last year I believe he has only one, and it was later rescinded.

I would hope some of the defensive identity would remain if Gobert was traded for assets. But both KAT and especially Naz would need to improve defensively to give the team a chance to keep up, even with a crazy good offense. But from a purely-GM level, this could maximize our assets.

This is what I'm talking about. Gobert would be the odd man out and KAT winds back up at center.

[Folklore]

I think we are in the "defensive" phase of our roster construction, partly because of the goal of stopping Denver and Connelly understanding how they could be neutralized. But I don't believe this is Connelly's longterm vision for the franchise.

I think this is evidenced by this offseason's moves. I know everyone thinks Towns leaving is inevitable, but I'm not certain. In terms of Minnesota's overall roster construction, I'd argue that Rudy Gobert is the biggest "odd man out" of the big men group.

I can easily see a transition to Gobert moving on and Towns sliding back to the 5, with the team moving to a "five-out" offense. Towns, Naz Reid, Leonard Miller, Luka Garza all fit this offensive mold. Get out and run, taking advantage of transition with weapons like Edwards, Dillingham, McDaniels, Shannon, etc in addition to that big man group that can feast in transition.

It’s interesting from an overall team value.

Towns would be worth more offensively if he was playing center, getting all those match up advantages. It would also open up starter minutes for Naz, which could increase his value as well.

Towns doesn’t get enough credit for improving his major flaws. I never expected him to be an okay defender, but he has put his heart into it. People also dislike Towns whining to the ref, and I believe he had 13 technical fouls two years ago. Last year I believe he has only one, and it was later rescinded.

I would hope some of the defensive identity would remain if Gobert was traded for assets. But both KAT and especially Naz would need to improve defensively to give the team a chance to keep up, even with a crazy good offense. But from a purely-GM level, this could maximize our assets.

This is what I'm talking about. Gobert would be the odd man out and KAT winds back up at center.

I thought that Towns could play PF but then I realized that he lost all off his advantages when he did. And his injury along with father time wont make things better as he ages. Many have pointed this out. If his knee is going to have problems then we should be trading Both of them but I'd trade Rudy first.

[thinktank]

There is zero chance we remain a top 3 defensive team without Rudy and with a KAT / Naz front court.

Maybe top half.

Not saying we shouldn’t do that. The offense would be fire, no cap.

[winforlose]

There is zero chance we remain a top 3 defensive team without Rudy and with a KAT / Naz front court.

Maybe top half.

Not saying we shouldn’t do that. The offense would be fire, no cap.

The defense can hold up without Rudy for spurts, but we would need to maintain the defensive identity without Rudy, and that could be tricky. Also, without Rudy and with Karl at C he might get in foul trouble.

[minimus]

"When we started getting deeper into the playoffs, that's when the thing started — I came back so quick — knee started flaring up, started being super swollen. Some days I couldn't practice just because I was just unable to walk, it's like I can't do it. If it wasn't for our medical staff I would've been held out more,"

Towns said on Podcast P with Paul George.

This changes a bit perception of last playoff run. Against DAL Nickeil was injured after Jokic screen, Edwards was shaken after Jokic foul (and hard fall), Towns was dealing was knee injuries. First, our athletic department has done an amazing job to prepare team for long run, as Alex Rodriguez mentioned organisation set pretty high standards for instance low body fat % etc. They need to keep these standards and continue to build on it. Second, Finch has room to improve in terms of load management and rotations. Gobert, Towns and Conley need to be monitored and rested timely in order to avoid injuries. Finally, I understand everything that Towns said about speeding up recovery, but now I am thinking about his long term longevity.

[Klomp]

As I have said multiple times. I think Towns is still severely underutilized on offense with our current team construction. We still have not figured out how to optimize him and he is just being an ok fit using his talent alone. He doesn't have a defined role that's benefiting him or the team and I think we got exposed by the Mavs for this. He has managed to find role on the defensive end and that need was so great it has managed to propel us to an elite team.

The other major problem is all on Towns and that is his mental mistakes that contribute to his fouling. It is a major detriment to his overall game. If he cut that out it would have a positive impact and his effectiveness would shoot up.

If we can manage to optimize his offense so he is closer to his pre-Rudy self in scoring production (probably means he has to take more three's) and if he can somehow cut these fouls down, that alone would take our team up a step, that fouling part is a big if. I think the offense part can be done but we need the coaching staff to make changes.

I think we are in the "defensive" phase of our roster construction, partly because of the goal of stopping Denver and Connelly understanding how they could be neutralized. But I don't believe this is Connelly's longterm vision for the franchise.

I think this is evidenced by this offseason's moves. I know everyone thinks Towns leaving is inevitable, but I'm not certain. In terms of Minnesota's overall roster construction, I'd argue that Rudy Gobert is the biggest "odd man out" of the big men group.

I can easily see a transition to Gobert moving on and Towns sliding back to the 5, with the team moving to a "five-out" offense. Towns, Naz Reid, Leonard Miller, Luka Garza all fit this offensive mold. Get out and run, taking advantage of transition with weapons like Edwards, Dillingham, McDaniels, Shannon, etc in addition to that big man group that can feast in transition.

It’s interesting from an overall team value.

Towns would be worth more offensively if he was playing center, getting all those match up advantages. It would also open up starter minutes for Naz, which could increase his value as well.

Towns doesn’t get enough credit for improving his major flaws. I never expected him to be an okay defender, but he has put his heart into it. People also dislike Towns whining to the ref, and I believe he had 13 technical fouls two years ago. Last year I believe he has only one, and it was later rescinded.

I would hope some of the defensive identity would remain if Gobert was traded for assets. But both KAT and especially Naz would need to improve defensively to give the team a chance to keep up, even with a crazy good offense. But from a purely-GM level, this could maximize our assets.

When people say they don't know if we'll be able to defend without Rudy...

Watch on YouTube

[minimus]

Guys, how du you read this?

Is it because Mike ability to run pick-n-roll? He can both pass and shoot
Is it because Towns finishing ability (mostly soft touch, since he is not a traditional rim runner)?

Also why number of Mike-Towns pick-n-rolls is always so low? Because of Towns/Mike injuries (playing time)? Because of Towns tendency to pickup offensive fouls?

[winforlose]

Guys, how du you read this?

Is it because Mike ability to run pick-n-roll? He can both pass and shoot
Is it because Towns finishing ability (mostly soft touch, since he is not a traditional rim runner)?

Also why number of Mike-Towns pick-n-rolls is always so low? Because of Towns/Mike injuries (playing time)? Because of Towns tendency to pickup offensive fouls?

Towns is floor spacing and stays outside a lot of the time. Mike runs PNR with Rudy far more often. Also KAT runs big/big PNR with Rudy as the roller. I wouldn’t read to much into frequency.

[Colbinii]

Kawhi Leonard isolation is ridiculous

[KGdaBom]

I think we are in the "defensive" phase of our roster construction, partly because of the goal of stopping Denver and Connelly understanding how they could be neutralized. But I don't believe this is Connelly's longterm vision for the franchise.

I think this is evidenced by this offseason's moves. I know everyone thinks Towns leaving is inevitable, but I'm not certain. In terms of Minnesota's overall roster construction, I'd argue that Rudy Gobert is the biggest "odd man out" of the big men group.

I can easily see a transition to Gobert moving on and Towns sliding back to the 5, with the team moving to a "five-out" offense. Towns, Naz Reid, Leonard Miller, Luka Garza all fit this offensive mold. Get out and run, taking advantage of transition with weapons like Edwards, Dillingham, McDaniels, Shannon, etc in addition to that big man group that can feast in transition.

It’s interesting from an overall team value.

Towns would be worth more offensively if he was playing center, getting all those match up advantages. It would also open up starter minutes for Naz, which could increase his value as well.

Towns doesn’t get enough credit for improving his major flaws. I never expected him to be an okay defender, but he has put his heart into it. People also dislike Towns whining to the ref, and I believe he had 13 technical fouls two years ago. Last year I believe he has only one, and it was later rescinded.

I would hope some of the defensive identity would remain if Gobert was traded for assets. But both KAT and especially Naz would need to improve defensively to give the team a chance to keep up, even with a crazy good offense. But from a purely-GM level, this could maximize our assets.

When people say they don't know if we'll be able to defend without Rudy...

Watch on YouTube

Incredibly small sample size.

[FrenchMinnyFan]

It’s interesting from an overall team value.

Towns would be worth more offensively if he was playing center, getting all those match up advantages. It would also open up starter minutes for Naz, which could increase his value as well.

Towns doesn’t get enough credit for improving his major flaws. I never expected him to be an okay defender, but he has put his heart into it. People also dislike Towns whining to the ref, and I believe he had 13 technical fouls two years ago. Last year I believe he has only one, and it was later rescinded.

I would hope some of the defensive identity would remain if Gobert was traded for assets. But both KAT and especially Naz would need to improve defensively to give the team a chance to keep up, even with a crazy good offense. But from a purely-GM level, this could maximize our assets.

This is what I'm talking about. Gobert would be the odd man out and KAT winds back up at center.

I thought that Towns could play PF but then I realized that he lost all off his advantages when he did. And his injury along with father time wont make things better as he ages. Many have pointed this out. If his knee is going to have problems then we should be trading Both of them but I'd trade Rudy first.

I love Rudy but I agree. Rudy become what he is by putting hard work to compensate his lack of talents. He is getting older and I start to wonder if he can maintain this level for years. Once he decline , it will be hard to watch. How many years he got left in the tank before it happened ? Hard to know probably 2 or 3 years.

[minimus]

Read on Twitter

MIN need 2022 version of Towns

[minimus]

This might explain why Towns can't simply shoot over smaller opponent

Read on Twitter

[TimberKat]

Read on Twitter

MIN need 2022 version of Towns

You made a lot of great posts over the summer. I think you also posted about his 3pt release height, turn over on drives. I think his go to move still is the low post back to the basket. He needs to go back to that to gain the efficiency. Take the 3s when they are available but not as go to play (like Curry).

[Movics]

BREAKING: The Minnesota Timberwolves are nearing a trade to send All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns to the New York Knicks, sources tell me and @JonKrawczynski.

[Klomp]

So long

[Dalvin]

I'm gonna miss KAT

[younggunsmn]

Thanks for the 9 years of entertaining basketball KAT.
I'm glad you will be going home and to a situation you can win.
Best of luck.

[Note30]

I still remember the hope I had when it was just you, Wiggs, Zach, and Rubio.

Sorry it turned out like it did, good luck in NY.