Minnesota Timberwolves All-Star big man Karl-Anthony Towns is on the verge of returning ahead of the NBA playoffs. After suffering a left meniscus tear and undergoing surgery in March, Towns has been cleared for full-contact, 5-on-5 basketball activities and is progressing toward his return to play.
Recently, Towns participated in his first team scrimmage on Sunday, leading to a level of optimism that he will be able to return before the playoffs start. The team's recent medical update further provides a sense of clarity for his eventual return.
The Timberwolves have been without Towns since March 4, posting an 11-5 record in his absence due to the contributions of Anthony Edwards and Naz Reid. In these 16 games Minnesota has been without their big man, Edwards has averaged 25.3 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 5.4 assists per game while shooting 43.9 percent from the floor. Reid, the league's potential Sixth Man of the Year, has averaged 18.9 points and 7.2 rebounds per game while shooting 44 percent from deep in this span.
Currently at the top of the Western Conference standings entering the final week of the regular season, the Timberwolves own the league's best defensive rating at 106.7 since Towns' injury.
Impact of Karl-Anthony Towns' return
Aside from his size and impact next to Rudy Gobert defensively, the Timberwolves will get a massive boost on offense when Towns is able to return. Prior to his injury, Towns was averaging 22.1 points and 8.4 rebounds per game while shooting 42.3 percent from the floor. His 134 total made threes this season rank third behind Reid (164) and Brook Lopez (134) for the most by a true frontcourt player this season.
As things currently stand, the Timberwolves find themselves at the top of the Western Conference standings entering Tuesday night's game against the Wizards. A win would inch them closer to clinching the top spot in the conference for the first time since the 2003-04 season. That year, Minnesota made their only Western Conference Finals appearance in team history, ultimately losing 4-2 to Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers.
Although there is still no clear timetable for Towns' return to the court, it does seem likely that he will take the court for at least one of the Timberwolves' final games this season. Towns will miss Tuesday night's game against the Washington Wizards, and he will likely sit out Wednesday night's game on the road against the Denver Nuggets. This means the All-Star big man could be preparing to return in some capacity for Friday night's game in Minnesota against the Atlanta Hawks.
The fact that Towns has progressed to playing in a team scrimmage and resuming full basketball activities less than four weeks after surgery is a major step in the right direction, especially considering that Philadelphia 76ers reigning MVP Joel Embiid missed over two months worth of action before recently returning due to his meniscus injury.
The Timberwolves will provide further updates on Towns' status for the remainder of the regular season before the playoffs.
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