Wolves: Towns is Western Conference Player of the Week

Minneapolis/St. Paul – The NBA today named Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns as the Western Conference Player of the Week for games played from Tuesday, October 22 through Sunday, October 27. This is the fourth time in his career that Towns has won the weekly award (November 20, 2017, April 11, 2016, March 13, 2017). This marks the third time in team history that a Timberwolves player has won Player of the Week honors following the first week of the season (Kevin Love, 2013-14 and Kevin Garnett, 2004-05).

Karl Anthony Towns    photo by Nagashia Jackson

After the first week of play, Towns ranks third in the NBA in scoring (32.0 ppg), sixth in rebounds (13.3 rpg), second in steals (3.00 spg) and second in three-pointers made (5.0/game) after leading Minnesota to a perfect 3-0 start to the season, tied for the second-best start in team history.

Towns began the week by collecting 36 points, 14 rebounds, three assists, three steals and three blocks in the October 23 season-opening victory at Brooklyn, his third career 5×3 effort (pts/reb/ast/stl/blk). He tallied 16 of his 36 points in the fourth quarter, including the game-tying 3-pointer with 1:06 remaining to force overtime. It was his career-best seventh triple of the contest, matching the NBA’s most ever on Opening Night and boosting his career total to 400. At age 23y/346d, he’s the youngest center in NBA history (by nearly four years) to reach 400 as well as just the 24th player at any position to make 400 before his 24th birthday.

He followed up that performance with 37 points on (13-of-18 FG, 4-of-7 3FG), 15 rebounds, eight assists, a career-high four steals and two blocks in Minnesota’s Oct. 25 triumph at Charlotte, becoming just the sixth player in NBA history to begin a season with consecutive 35+ point/10+ rebound performances. Towns’ final line against the Hornets marked the first such stat line in NBA history. The game was also his 50th career 30/10 effort, tying Kevin Love for the second-most such games in Wolves history (Garnett leads with 64).

Towns then rounded out the week with 23 points (including 15 in the first quarter), 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals in Sunday’s home-opening win vs. Miami. Towns also hit on four threes last night, making him the fifth player in NBA history to connect in at least four 3-pointers in each of his first three games of a season (Stephen Curry (2x), Ray Allen, James Harden, and Kemba Walker).