Though the Minnesota Timberwolves and their fans didn’t need any additional reasons to love and worship Karl-Anthony Towns, last year’s No. 1 overall pick just gave them one.
Per Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press:
Karl-Anthony Towns held his first MN basketball clinic at Hopkins: "I love being here. Hopefully I can spend the rest of my career here"
— Jon Krawczynski (@JonKrawczynski) July 27, 2016
Come talk to us in a half-decade or so KAT, after the Timberwolves organization has, presumably, broken your heart more often than not. Just ask Kevin Garnett what we’re talking about.
Yes, this is clearly a great thing to hear. It would suck if Towns hated Minnesota. But he’s not the type. Our impressions of him indicate that he’s a low-key guy, someone who is fiercely competitive and loyal, and who cares more about winning than about where he’s actually doing said winning.
But everything is candy and daises and feathery clouds when you’re a sophomore (unless you play for the Sacramento Kings). And Towns, truthfully, doesn’t have much say in where he spends the next six to eight years. He cannot become a restricted free agent for the next three years, and players in his position typically sign a max extension with their incumbent team, thus tethering him to Minnesota for another four or five years after that.
Things are changing for the Timberwolves, though—and fast. Tom Thibodeau is the head coach, they have a phenomenal young core in place and the playoffs don’t appear to be very far off. Towns is the centerpiece of this project, and so long as he remains healthy, and on his current trajectory, the Timberpups are destined to do special things.
That should be enough to keep him happy in Minnesota for the foreseeable future. As for the rest of his career, well, we don’t actually know. Nor does Towns. He can’t know that this early into his NBA tenure. But if he’s able to bring the Timberwolves their first-ever championship, that’ll go a long way toward ensuring he doesn’t get wandering eyes six, seven, eight years down the line.
