In a league dominated by the guard position, Karl-Anthony Towns is revolutionizing the center position before our very eyes.
LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook are names that are dominating the league this year, but they all have one thing in common: none of them is listed as a center.
This is where the Karl-Anthony Towns steps in. He is about as diverse as they come with regard to pure talent. The former No. 1 overall pick has proved to be every bit as good as advertised for the young Minnesota Timberwolves.
Towns came in to the league with questions about his ability to score. He only averaged 10.3 points per game as a freshman at Kentucky, which is nothing to write home about. However, he has proved everyone wrong in his short two-year stint in the NBA.
Fans must remember, he wasn’t given many chances to score at Kentucky as he was a part of the John Calipari “platoon system,” where it was five-in, five-out every 6-10 minutes. His per-40 minute statistics were a little more impressive, however, at19.5 points per game.
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He only averaged 6.6 shots per game and connected 3.7 of those shots (56.6 percent) at Kentucky. Again, nothing pops out at you there, but it’s his seamless transition to the NBA that has made him such a great story.
Towns can do it all. He can stretch the floor. He can play with his back to the basket. He can even put a helpless defender on a poster if the opportunity arises. Finally, he can create shots for himself, which is rare for a 7-footer.
Needless to say, he fits in well with the young, athletic talent the Timberwolves possess.
Towns is averaging 22.4 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game this season on a very lackluster team. His shot-making ability is what makes him a matchup nightmare.
Throw a big man on him and he trusts his 37.5 percent shooting from behind the three-point arc to stretch the floor. If switched on by a guard, he has smooth enough handles to dribble to the block where he can do work from there.
Let’s not forget about his lethal midrange jumper either. He is one of a handful of centers that must be guarded anywhere on the floor.
New York Knicks superstar Kristaps Porzingis is another one of those seven-foot matchup nightmares. The 7’3″ Latvian has taken the league by storm, much like Towns, and has captured the attention of fans.
His ability to stretch the floor, put the ball on the deck and finish at the rim makes Porzingis intriguing to watch. Towns has the edge, but Porzingis is a close second.
In his rookie campaign, Towns won Rookie of the Year and was named to the NBA All-Rookie Team. He has the ability and work ethic to be unique and possibly one of the greatest big men to ever play the game.
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It is way too early to tell if he will be in the same breath as Shaquille O’Neal, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Russell or Wilt Chamberlain, but in the meantime, sit back and enjoy the extremely young and athletic Minnesota franchise player.