Karl Anthony-Towns: Shocking changes to his national narrative

Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl Anthony-Towns was taken with the first pick in the 2015 NBA draft after his lone year at the University of Kentucky. At the time the Timberwolves were still rebuilding and looked to pair the talented big man with prior top pick Andrew Wiggins.

At the time, Towns was heralded as a do-it-all big who could make an impact on both ends of the basketball court and was seen as a vital building block to take the franchise back to the NBA Playoffs. Now eight years removed from Towns’ introduction to Wolves fans, how has the narrative around him changed?

Early Career

KAT was immediately one of the most exciting prospects in the league and took home the 2015-16 NBA Rookie of the Year award in a lopsided race. In his inaugural season, he averaged 18.3 points and 10.5 rebounds and provided Wolves fans with hope that their newfound duo that both both Andrew Wiggins and Karl-Anthony Towns could be a problem for years to come. Despite the excitement surrounding their young core, the Timberwolves finished the 2015-16 season with only 29 wins on the year.

In his sophomore season, he looked to hammer home the idea he could be a top talent, increasing his numbers across the board now averaging 25.1 points and 12.3 rebounds. This is also when his ability to shoot a three-point shot became a key component of his offensive game. He managed to increase his three-point attempts from 1.1 shots to 3.4 shots per game while shooting a respectable 37 percent from beyond the arc.

At this point, the Minnesota Timberwolves were still experiencing growing pains, boasting a measly 31-51 record throughout the 2016-17 season. Regardless, Towns was looked at by the NBA world as a catalyst for the next generation of centers and seemed to be quickly approaching superstar status.