Karl-Anthony Towns was confirmed to return Wednesday night for the Minnesota Timberwolves after sitting out 51 games following a right calf strain.
The three-time All-Star has been absent since November 28. He was averaging 20.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 5.3 assists in 21 games before the injury.
“Expectations are that he just kind of settles into the flow of the game, not try to do too much at this point in time,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said before Minnesota hosted the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday night. “Most importantly, knock the rust off. Certainly want him to be himself but not at the expense of what we’re trying to do out there. And I think that’s pretty easy ask for him.”
Finch did say Towns will face limitations, but there were no specifics. He had an update on Anthony Edwards too, who was listed as questionable after missing two games due to a right ankle sprain.
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The Minnesota Timberwolves were 10-11 when Karl-Anthony Towns had his injury and did well since he had been out, going 26-26 that period. But, they have been 20-16 since the beginning of 2023, but have faltered lately, going 2-3 in their past five games.
Minnesota is No.9 in the West, trailing the Oklahoma City Thunders (36-36) and Dallas Mavericks (36-36) by ½ game for the No.7 and 8 seeds, respectively, and are one game behind the Golden State Warriors (37-36) for the No.6 seed.
Towns, after playing 82 games in his first three seasons in the NBA, lost a significant time to injuries and illnesses since then. The Wolves big man is a three-time All-Star and two-time All-NBA selection, winning Kia Rookie of the Year honours in 2016.
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