Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns has been ruled out for Thursday night's game against the Portland Trail Blazers, according to Dane Moore of ESPN Radio:
Karl-Anthony Towns will not play tonight against the Blazers.
— Dane Moore (@DaneMooreNBA) January 9, 2020
Thursday's absence mean Towns extends his inactive streak to 12 games as he continues to be hampered by a left knee sprain suffered in mid-December.
Chris Hine of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported Towns could be active against the Trail Blazers earlier this morning, with head coach Ryan Saunders suggesting the former No. 1 overall pick is continuing to to make progress:
Karl-Anthony Towns' return to the Timberwolves lineup is near, and it could come Thursday against Portland.
Coach Ryan Saunders said the Wolves will evaluate how Towns looks during warmups before deciding whether he will play against Portland at Target Center.
“He's been doing more and more,” Saunders said at shootaround.
However, it appears the Wolves did not feel comfortable enough with Towns' movement during warmups. Minnesota have repeatedly listed Towns as questionable over the last few weeks and continue to evaluate him on a day-to-day basis, though the injury has now cost him close to a month of action.
Towns had been the subject of trade rumors over the last few weeks, but ESPN NBA Insider Bobby Marks said it is unlikely Towns is traded due to his recent extension as well as the fact that the Timberwolves have a first-year head coach (Saunders) and head of basketball operations (Gersson Rosas).
Regardless, Minnesota are missing their franchise center. They earned wins over the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers before falling to the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday, and their schedule really starts to get tough after Portland.
Towns has been “close” to returning for awhile. When will it actually happen?
Follow Us
Subscribe