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Karl-Anthony Towns

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Karl-Anthony Towns
Towns shooting a free throw against the Florida Gators in 2015
No. 32 – Minnesota Timberwolves
PositionCenter / Power forward
LeagueNBA
Personal information
Born (1995-11-15) November 15, 1995 (age 28)
Piscataway, New Jersey
NationalityDominican / American
Listed height7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)
Listed weight244 lb (111 kg)
Career information
High schoolSt. Joseph (Metuchen, New Jersey)
CollegeKentucky (2014–2015)
NBA draft2015: 1st round, 1st overall pick
Selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves
Playing career2015–present
Career history
2015–presentMinnesota Timberwolves
Career highlights and awards
Stats Edit this at Wikidata at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Medals
Representing  Dominican Republic
Men's basketball
Centrobasket
Gold medal – first place 2012 Puerto Rico National Team

Karl-Anthony Towns Jr. (born November 15, 1995) is a Dominican-American professional basketball player who plays for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the University of Kentucky. Towns was named to the Dominican Republic national basketball team Olympic squad as a 16-year-old, although the Dominican Republic ultimately did not qualify for the 2012 Olympics. He was selected with the first overall pick in the 2015 NBA draft by the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Early years

Towns was born in Piscataway, New Jersey to an African American father Karl Towns, Sr.[1][2] and a Dominican mother Jacqueline Cruz.[2][3] He attended Lake Nelson Seventh-Day Adventist School, he then went to Theodore Schor Middle School after transferring in from Our Lady of Fatima School in 2009.[4] Towns's father played basketball for Monmouth University and coached basketball at Piscataway Technical High School, where the precocious Towns practiced with the junior varsity team as a fifth grader.[5]

High school career

Towns dunking in the 2014 McDonald's All-American Boys Game

As a freshman at St. Joseph High School, Towns led the basketball team to a state championship in 2012, earning himself the top position in the ESPN 25 national ranking of high school players.[6] Towns also led his team to state titles in 2013 and 2014.[5] Towns was selected at the age of 16 to play on the Dominican Republic national basketball team, which represents that nation in international competition.[6] Towns was eligible based on the fact that his mother is from the Dominican Republic. During 2011 and 2012 competitions, John Calipari, head coach at the University of Kentucky and a former NBA head coach, coached the team, which finished third in the 2011 FIBA Americas Championship and fourth place at the 2012 FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament for Men, falling one position short of qualifying for the 2012 Olympic Basketball Tournament.[7]

In December 2012, Towns announced that he was going to reclassify as a senior and commit to play on the Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team under Coach John Calipari, who had coached him as part of the national team of the Dominican Republic. ESPN, which had ranked him as the top prospect in the 2015 recruiting class, listed him as third-ranked in its 2014 class.[8] Towns graduated from high school with a 3.96 GPA.[5] He was named the 2014 Gatorade Player of the Year.[9]

On January 6, 2013, Towns recorded a quadruple double with 16 points, 17 rebounds, 11 blocks and 11 assists, then on January 5, 2014 he recorded another with 20 points, 14 rebounds, 12 blocks and 10 assists.[10] Towns averaged 20.9 points, 13.4 rebounds and 6.2 blocks per game as a senior.

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Karl-Anthony Towns
C 		Metuchen, New Jersey St. Joseph 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Dec 4, 2012 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:5/5 stars   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:5/5 stars
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 4, 2 (C)   Rivals: 5  ESPN: 9, 1 (NJ), 3 (C)
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "Kentucky 2014 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved December 4, 2012.
  • "2014 Kentucky Basketball Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved December 4, 2012.
  • "ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 4, 2012.
  • "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved December 4, 2012.
  • "2014 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved December 4, 2012.

College career

In his freshman year, Kentucky used a unique "platoon system" that limited the minutes of each player. Towns subsequently averaged 10.3 points and 6.7 rebounds in 21.1 minutes per game.[11] Towns was widely projected to be picked as a top selection of the lottery in the 2015 NBA draft.[12] He studied kinesiology in his one year at Kentucky, and hopes to become a doctor after his basketball career.[13][14] Though he left Kentucky for the NBA, Towns enrolled in online courses, and hopes to earn his degree.[15] He was named a second-team All-American by the Associated Press and NABC, and a third-team All-American by Sporting News.[16][17][18]

On April 9, 2015, Towns and fellow Kentucky teammates in Andrew Harrison, Aaron Harrison, Dakari Johnson, Devin Booker, Trey Lyles and Willie Cauley-Stein, all declared for the 2015 NBA draft.

College statistics

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2014–15 Kentucky 39 39 21.1 .566 .250 .813 6.7 1.1 0.5 2.3 10.3

Professional career

Minnesota Timberwolves (2015–present)

Throughout the 2014–15 season, Towns was often ranked behind Duke center Jahlil Okafor as a draft prospect. However, due to strong play in the NCAA Tournament, and a growing consensus that Towns was a better defensive player and had a chance to become a better offensive player, Towns overtook Okafor in most draft rankings. On June 25, 2015, Towns was selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the first overall pick in the 2015 NBA draft.[19] On July 7, 2015, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Timberwolves[20] and joined the team for the 2015 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, where in five games, he averaged 12.8 points and 7.2 rebounds per game.[21] He made his debut for the Timberwolves in the team's season opener against the Los Angeles Lakers on October 28, recording 14 points and 12 rebounds as a starter in a 112–111 win.[22] The following game on October 30 against the Denver Nuggets, his 28 points and 14 rebounds propelled the Timberwolves to their first 2–0 start with two wins on the road in team history.[23] Over his first 13 games of the season, Towns averaged 16.0 points and 10.4 rebounds per game. Those numbers dropped, however, to 8.4 points and 6.0 rebounds over the next five games.[24] On December 5, he responded to this poor string of games with his best performance since October 30, recording 27 points and 12 rebounds in a loss to the Portland Trail Blazers.[25] He followed this up with a 26 point, 14 rebound performance in a 123-122 overtime overtime victory against the Los Angeles Lakers.

References

  1. ^ Karl-Anthony Towns taken No.1 by Wolves; Tyus Jones acquired in trade with Cavaliers, Star Tribune, June 26, 2015
  2. ^ a b "Towns' parents separable, if only for UK games". courier-journal.com. Retrieved March 28, 2015.
  3. ^ Parker, Brandon (July 24, 2012). "Summer school, Karl Towns Jr., 16, improved significantly playing for the Dominican Republic". ESPN. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
  4. ^ Pompey, Keith. "A towering hoops talent – and only in eighth grade", The Philadelphia Inquirer, May 29, 2011. Accessed December 20, 2012. "The Piscataway, N.J., native won't turn 16 until Nov. 15. He's a straight A eighth grader at Theodore Schor Middle School. Towns did, however, repeat the seventh grade after transferring from Our Lady of Fatima School two years ago."
  5. ^ a b c Schonbrun, Zach (April 3, 2015). "Two Parts to His Name, but Karl-Anthony Towns Is One Complete Player". New York Times. Retrieved April 4, 2015.
  6. ^ a b Parker, Brandon. "Towns Jr. going global; N.J. native, 16, will play for the Dominican Republic during Olympic qualifying", ESPN, June 18, 2012. Accessed December 20, 2012. "But Towns is much more than a charismatic guy with a pair of size 20 shoes. For one, the rising sophomore helped his St. Joseph (Metuchen, N.J.) team to a state title this winter before taking the No. 1 spot in the recently released ESPN 25. Even more impressively, Towns' clout reached international status in May when he was named to the Dominican Republic National Team that will attempt to qualify for the London Olympics in July."
  7. ^ Braziller, Zach. "Towns looms as New Jersey’s new hoops stud", New York Post, October 27, 2012. Accessed December 21, 2012. "He has taken visits to Duke, North Carolina and Kentucky and played on the Dominican Republic National Team, coached by Kentucky’s John Calipari, in the London Olympics."
  8. ^ Telep, Dave. "Karl Towns Jr. commits to Kentucky", ESPN, December 4, 2012. Accessed December 20, 2012. "Previously the nation's No. 1 sophomore in the 2015 ESPN 25, the 6-foot-11 Towns also announced he intends to reclassify to the junior class and graduate a year earlier than expected. He slides into the No. 3 ranking in the 2014 ESPN 60."
  9. ^ Braziller, Zach (April 1, 2015). "Karl-Anthony Towns: 'Renaissance man' to Calipari's unassuming assassin". New York Post. Retrieved April 4, 2015.
  10. ^ "KARL TOWNS: THE ANTENNA Q+A". antennamag.com. Retrieved April 3, 2015.
  11. ^ Karl-Anthony Towns Sports-Reference, Sports-Reference, June 26, 2015
  12. ^ Kilgore, Adam (December 16, 2014). "Drowning in stars, Kentucky Wildcats thriving with platoon system". Washington Post. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
  13. ^ Braziller, Zach (November 8, 2014). "The Kentucky forward who might be next year's No. 1 pick". New York Post. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
  14. ^ Court Review Player to Watch: Karl-Anthony Towns
  15. ^ Schonbrun, Zach (June 22, 2015). "Pursuing Perfection From Atop the N.B.A. Draft Class". New York Times. Retrieved June 23, 2015.
  16. ^ "The AP released their All-American teams on Monday". NBCSports.com. March 30, 2015. Retrieved March 30, 2015.
  17. ^ "Niang, Hield Earn NABC All-America Honors" (Press release). Big 12 Conference. March 30, 2015. Retrieved March 30, 2015.
  18. ^ Linton, Chance (March 9, 2015). "Sporting News releases 2014-2015 All-American Team". 247sports.com. Archived from the original on March 9, 2015. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  19. ^ "Timberwolves Select Kentucky's Karl-Anthony Towns with the First Overall Pick in the 2015 NBA Draft". NBA.com. June 25, 2015. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
  20. ^ "Timberwolves Sign 2015 NBA Draft Picks Karl-Anthony Towns and Tyus Jones". NBA.com. July 7, 2015. Retrieved July 7, 2015.
  21. ^ "2015 Summer League Player Profile – Karl-Anthony Towns". NBA.com. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
  22. ^ "Wolves edge Lakers 112-111 in first game since Flip's death". NBA.com. October 28, 2015. Retrieved October 29, 2015.
  23. ^ "Towns, Timberwolves beat Nuggets, ready for Flip's memorial". NBA.com. October 30, 2015. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  24. ^ "Karl-Anthony Towns 2015-16 Game Log". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  25. ^ "Blazers come back from 17 down again to beat Wolves". NBA.com. December 5, 2015. Retrieved December 5, 2015.
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