4 reasons why Timberwolves rumors of Karl-Anthony Towns trade is nuts

Reason I: KAT is the key

Minnesota Timberwolves center/power forward Karl-Anthony Towns is the only way this roster can work as is. While some Timberwolves fans may not fully appreciate the unicorn that is C/PF Karl-Anthony Towns, I can assure you that if he was not so good at so many things in the NBA, the Timberwolves would never have traded for center Rudy Gobert.

Karl-Anthony Towns is the key to this Minnesota Timberwolves strategy, and it’s not even close. Without KAT, the Timberwolves not only lose one of the team’s top scorers but the team parts ways with an NBA All-Star performer in his prime.  KAT is tied for the team’s Top-Scorer, is second in team assists, second in team rebounds, and leads the team in Player Efficiency Rating.

Whether you love him or not, Karl-Anthony Towns is truly the keystone to the entire Timberwolves’ planning going forward. The team traded for center Rudy Gobert, not to replace Towns, but to complement him. With Gobert defending the rim, Towns can focus on driving to the basket on the other end of dishing the ball for an easy score to Gobert.

It’s KAT who does his best to keep Gobert busy scoring baskets on post-ups, alley-oops, and dunks. It’s KAT who has transitioned from center to power forward. It’s Karl-Anthony Towns whose versatility and elite unique skillset have enabled the front office to ambitiously plan to upgrade the roster by adding one of the best NBA defensive centers to the roster. But that added defense only makes sense if this team can continue to score.

Sure, the Knicks may want to get better. In fact, when it comes to their roster, Karl Anthony Towns would be ideally suited to help them get much better very quickly.  But in order to make that make sense for the Timberwolves, the Timberwolves’ front office must agree that any trade makes this team better.  No package of picks and players that the Knicks possess can make the Timberwolves better this season by trading away Karl-Anthony Towns.

Trades don’t just happen. They happen because every team that participates is convinced that they emerge from the exchange in a far more competitive position than they entered. That just is not the case here.