Many Minnesota Timberwolves fans are seeing themselves root for the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals. That is because of Karl-Anthony Towns, who is one of Minnesota’s all-time best players, and someone they cheered on at home games for nine years. It has now been about 20 months since the Wolves traded the versatile center to the Knicks.
Apron life made the Wolves front office realize it would be nearly impossible to keep Towns and build a team with enough depth to be a contender. While the fans are happy for KAT, who still speaks quite fondly about his time in Minnesota, in the back of their minds, they still wish he were performing for their team.
Next season, the hope has to be that Joan Beringer’s further development can help take some of the sting away from no longer having Towns.
Beringer gives Wolves fans hope in a post-Towns landscape
Right now, the majority of the Wolves fanbase wants Julius Randle traded. It was another poor postseason for the 31-year-old, particularly against the San Antonio Spurs. Donte DiVincenzo tore his Achilles in the opening round of the playoffs. It’ll be a while before he’s seen on the court again, if he is at all next season.
Those two, of course, were traded to the Timberwolves in the Towns deal. The other part of the trade was Minnesota receiving a 2025 first-round pick, which was used on center Joan Beringer. Turning 20 years old on November 11, it was expected to be a rookie season where the Frenchman didn’t play much, and that’s what it turned out to be.
In order for Beringer to be a regular rotational member next season, it will likely require Randle to be dealt (or Rudy Gobert, or Naz Reid). Otherwise, it’s another year of the youngster being behind the three veterans on the frontcourt depth chart.
It would be unfair to believe that Beringer can even come near the heights of Towns on the offensive end. The potential is certainly there, though, for him to become a better defender than Towns, even if the six-time All-Star is arguably playing his best ball on that side currently.
Beringer averaged 3.0 blocks per 36 minutes, and with more time on an NBA court, he should better learn how to pick up fouls less frequently.
Unfortunately, in the world of aprons, the Timberwolves felt as if they had to trade KAT. There is optimism surrounding Beringer, though, and a larger role next season will allow fans to see more development from someone who can be their future starting center for quite some time.
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