In Game 1 of the 2023 NBA Playoffs, the Minnesota Timberwolves were bad, unable to summon the same conviction or convincingness that they demonstrated in the play-in tournament. It wasn't just that the Timberwolves were blasted off the court 109-80 by the Denver Nuggets as much as it seemed that the Nuggets never had to sweat at any point in their 29 point victory. Nearly every Timberwolf struggled. Anthony Edwards, Rudy Gobert, Karl-Anthony Towns, Kyle Anderson, Mike Conley: all bad. But for his part, Towns doesn't seem all that worried yet.
“”I took good shots,” Towns said after the game. “[I'm] staying aggressive. S**t happens. Move on, flush the game. I’m a hell of a shooter. I know that, believe that, know it. Proved it. So I just gotta go out there and just make the shots next game.”
With just 11 points on 5-15 shooting (1-7 from three), Towns had arguably his worst showing of the season for the Timberwolves in Game 1. His 11 points were his third-lowest total of any game this season and the worst of any game in which he played at least 30 minutes. It's fair to expect Towns to bounce back—he's too good a player to play this badly for an entire series. As one of the best big men shooters of all time, Towns will surely at least make more shots than he did on Sunday—after shooting 37 percent on catch and shoot threes all season, Towns sunk just one of seven last night.
Still, this game is yet another notch on Karl-Anthony Towns' growing list of playoff duds for the Timberwolves. While Towns has had a few big playoff performances, those are few and far between; Towns is 3-9 in 12 career playoff games and has scored 15 points or fewer in more games (five) than he's topped 30 (1).
Follow Us
Subscribe