NBA leaders in Defensive Win Shares this season: 4.0 — Rudy Gobert 3.2 — Karl-Anthony Towns 3.1 — Anthony Davis 3.0 — Anthony Edwards Locking up 🔒
Karl-Anthony Towns' future with the Minnesota Timberwolves is up in the air
NBAFriday, 16 February 2024 at 05:00
The Minnesota Timberwolves are having their best season in years and are currently the best team in the Western Conference with a strong 38-16 record. They have a great thing going, powered by their core of Karl-Anthony Towns, Rudy Gobert, and Anthony Edwards. But will this core stay together forever?
The Ringer wrote a piece looking ahead to the upcoming offseason and one unnamed NBA executive said they believe Towns' contract might end up being too expensive for the Timberwolves.
According to the report:
"The Minnesota Timberwolves—now leading the West at 38-16—have soaring expectations and a soaring payroll that will almost certainly have to be reduced soon to avoid a massive luxury-tax bill under the new CBA. The most likely solution? A trade of Karl-Anthony Towns. “I think it happens this summer,” The executive told Beck. “How much tax are they going to pay when [Anthony Edwards’s] extension kicks in and KAT’s extension jumps?” said an Eastern Conference exec."
The Timberwolves have put a lot of money into their biggest stars but that might end up being too much for them. Edwards is about to start his five-year contract extension that will earn him $204 million. Meanwhile, Towns has a deal for $221 million that starts this summer.
The team might have to make a choice between the two stars. Both have been terrific this season but many NBA analysts envision Edwards as the future of the team. Therefore, it wouldn't be shocking if Minnesota elected to side with him and cut Towns loose.
If that happens, the team would get a lot in return for Towns, who is averaging 22.5 points and 8.4 rebounds per game this season. His being on the trade market would create interest from dozens of teams.
Just In
