New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns was doing what he does so often on Monday. The 7-footer was driving hard to the hoop on a play that looked likely to be a dunk, or a foul. It was the latter as the Detroit Pistons’ Isaiah Stewart committed the foul. While on the downward trajectory of his jump, Towns’ right thumb hit on the bottom of the backboard.
While the 2015 first overall pick remained in the game after taping it up, he was in noticeable discomfort. It has been revealed by the New York Post that Towns has a bone chip in his right thumb.
Nature Of Karl-Anthony Towns Thumb Injury Revealed
Karl-Anthony Towns Has Bone Chip In Right Thumb
Seeing Towns in discomfort surely made a lot of Knicks fans uncomfortable on Monday. While the injury sounds rough, the good news is that he is listed as day-to-day, and he will play through it. The New York Post also reported that the center will get back to playing once the swelling goes down.
Time will tell if playing with an injured thumb on his shooting hand will affect Towns at all. Acquired in the offseason, Towns has been incredible on the offensive end. In his 38 appearances, the New Jersey native is posting averages of 25.4 points, 13.9 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.0 steals, and 0.8 blocks. He has shot incredibly as well with shooting splits of .550/.449/.836.
Absent From Lineup On Wednesday
The Knicks were without their sharpshooting big man on Wednesday as they went on the road to take on the Philadelphia 76ers. It was Towns’ fourth missed outing this season. New York improved to 2-2 without him in a 125-119 victory. The game took an additional five minutes due to going into overtime. The Knicks started Jericho Sims at center with Precious Achiuwa getting the crunch time minutes in the middle.
The Knicks had players that were able to step up in his absence. Jalen Brunson scored 38 points on 14-22 shooting from the field, and Josh Hart secured his fifth triple-double of the season with 10 points, 17 rebounds, and 12 assists.
With the Knicks opposition on Friday being a team that Towns is quite familiar with, it will be interesting to see if he will be able to suit up.
Towns’ Old Team Comes To Town(s) Friday
As previously mentioned, Towns was the first overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft. He was selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves, a team that he spent the first nine seasons of his career with. Towns made four All-Star teams in his Minnesota tenure, twice was named to the All-NBA Third Team, and was the 2015-16 Rookie of the Year. Last season, the Timberwolves made the Western Conference Finals for just the second time in franchise history.
The Knicks next opponent will be the Timberwolves on Friday at Madison Square Garden. Towns went back to the place he called home for nine years on December 19 when the Knicks visited the Target Center in Minneapolis. It was an incredible return game for Towns in a blowout victory for New York by the score of 133-107. Towns scored 32 points (10-12 from the field, 5-5 from three-point territory), grabbed 20 rebounds, and dished out six assists.
The post Nature Of Karl-Anthony Towns Thumb Injury Revealed appeared first on Last Word On Basketball.