Timberwolves shutting down Karl-Anthony Towns is the smart move

It’s unclear when Karl-Anthony Towns will return from a wrist injury, so it’s abundantly clear the Timberwolves need to shut him down for the season.

A left wrist injury sidelined Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns heading into the All-Star break and was expected to miss multiple more games. According to Chris Hine of the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Towns will get a second opinion on his wrist and remains out indefinitely.

Coming out of the All-Star break the Timberwolves have the second-worst in the Western Conference, at 16-37, with 14 losses in their last 15 games. They also have the seventh-hardest remaining schedule in the league so wins will be hard to come by.

Any hope for a glimpse at the pairing of Towns and D’Angelo Russell over the rest of the season lasted for one game out of the gate and it won’t happen again for at least several more while Towns deals with his wrist issue.

Towns also missed 15 games earlier this season with a left knee issue followed by an illness and the team went 5-10 over that span. In the last 20 games he has played, the Wolves have two wins.

At this point winning games does not benefit the Timberwolves in a moral victory sort of way nearly as much as losses will bolster their lottery chances. Falling to the worst record in the West will become more likely with each game Towns misses. It sounds counterintuitive but it’s in the Timberwolves’ best interest to love now to increase their chances of winning later. Plus, with the Golden State Warriors expecting Stephen Curry back, the reigning national champions may pass the T’Wolves in the standings with Towns sidelined.

An official announcement will probably not come soon as the Timberwolves are usually pretty secretive when it comes to injuries. But the decision is abundantly clear, Towns should not suit up again this season.