TNT Crew Calls Cap on Karl-Anthony Towns’ Hyperbole Amid Absolutely Brutal Series

By    |  
Updated:
Karl-Anthony Towns, NBA Playoffs - Minnesota Timberwolves at Dallas Mavericks
Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY SportsCredit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

When Flip Saunders used a number one overall pick on Karl-Anthony Towns he envisioned a big man that would change the game and impact the Minnesota Timberwolves well beyond his playing years. That hasn’t turned out to be reality, and in the biggest games of his career, he has wilted.

Make no mistake, Karl-Anthony Towns returning from a meniscus surgery this season to play meaningful minutes down the stretch and in the playoffs has been incredible. He put up arguably two of the best games in his career during Game 6 and 7 against the Denver Nuggets in round two.

Then he checked out.

Karl-Anthony Towns absent when Minnesota Timberwolves needed him most

Maybe Karl-Anthony Towns wants to win an NBA Championship, and maybe he’d like to do it with the Minnesota Timberwolves, but nothing about his performance during this Western Conference finals suggests that’s true. The statistics to describe his ineptitude are jarring and substantial. Take your pick as to which hurts the most:

  • Through three games Towns has shot 15/54 (28%) and 3/22 (14%) from deep.
  • He has averaged just 15 points per game.
  • The greatest impact he has made may have been an inadvertent knee to the head (first to the midsection) of Dereck Lively II.
  • In the 4th quarter alone, Towns has shot 2-12 from the field, 1-8 from deep, and has been worth -16 when on the court.
  • At 13.6% from deep, Towns owns the lowest three-point percentage in Western Conference Finals history.

Towns has been horrendous, abysmal, and non-existent. Use whichever describing terms you’d like. Set to make $49 million next year, he has looked like a non-factor.

If Tim Connelly is thinking ahead to roster construction after this season, he certainly has to be questioning whether Towns can be a key piece to a championship roster.

Related: Timberwolves Can’t Overcome Bad KAT, Whining Luka Doncic or Horrible Officiating in Game 3

Given how terribly Towns played Sunday, his night couldn’t get any worse, right? Wrong. Because after the game, during an interview scrum with reporters, KAT put his foot in his mouth, something he’s done time and time again throughout his career.

What was it this time? He told the reporters gathered around him that he takes 1,500 shots per day. When TNT cut back to the “Inside the NBA” crew shortly after, they were laughing at him and calling cap on that number. Embarrassing.

KAT: “I gotta laugh… I’m putting up up to 1,500 shots per day. I shot so well all playoffs. Confidence is extremely high. And to be having these unfortunate bounces and shots just not going in, it’s tough. It’s tough for sure. Confidence wise, I just have to keep shooting.”

— TNT broadcast cuts back to Inside the NBA —

Draymond: “Hey Ernie, you know what ‘cap’ is? KAT cappin. Ain’t nobody shooting 1500 shots a day, right now.

Kenny: “I never [counted] shots, I [counted] makes. To make 300 in a day takes about 45 minutes. So if you’re taking 1,500, it’s gonna take you about 2.5 hours. And you already practicing… it’s cap.”

Barkley: “The thing that’s funny about him saying that, first of all, he’s lying. Let’s just say hypothetically he was telling the truth. If he’s shooting 1,500 threes, that’s the problem. It’s the types of shots he is getting. That’s the problem. It has nothing to do with him not working on his game. If he’s just out there shooting threes, he’s still 4 for 32.”

Anthony Edwards Followed Karl-Anthony Towns’ Lead

Coming into Game 3, facing a 2-0 deficit, the Minnesota Timberwolves superstar guard said to expect a different type of player. Looking to get back to his slashing and driving ways, he showed some of that and posting a team-high 26 points on 11-of-24 shooting.

Edwards played 43 minutes and appeared he was going to will his team to victory in the 2nd half. A Michael Jordan-esque dunk seemed to get the momentum rolling back in their favor.

Unfortunately the 3rd quarter is where his impact sputtered out for Minnesota on Sunday night, and down the stretch he was unable to make his presence felt. Much like Towns, Edwards has been virtually non-existent by his standards over the first two games.

Related: Sounds Like the Timberwolves Plan to Offer Mike Conley a Lucrative Coaching Job

For it to only come in brief stretches during Game 3 was unfortunate to see, and while getting him off Kyrie Irving should have helped conditioning, it didn’t translate to the stat sheet.

Chris Finch watched first hand as his team found out what it’s like to go up against a pair of closers, and they responded with their top two options sputtering out at the worst time possible. We thought the Minnesota Timberwolves were ready for this moment. But their stars weren’t.

Mentioned in this article:

More About: