When will Karl-Anthony Towns return for the Timberwolves?

The Minnesota Timberwolves have been one of, if not the most surprising team in the NBA this season, hovering around the No. 1 seed in a loaded Western Conference from start to finish.

It appeared as if their season was in jeopardy when star big man Karl-Anthony Towns went down with an injury in early March, but Minnesota went 12-6 in his absence and sit at 55-25 on the season, just one game back of the No. 1 seed entering play on Thursday.

It was reported that Towns was nearing his return from a torn left meniscus just days ago, and now, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Towns is expected to play in Friday's game against the Atlanta Hawks. This is big news for Minnesota.

Karl-Anthony Towns is set to return for the Timberwolves at the perfect time

The timing could not be better for Towns to make his return. They have just two regular seasons left before the postseason begins. Getting Towns back in time to shake off some rust and be ready to play in the playoffs is a huge development.

Minnesota's success has been credited in large part to the ascension of Anthony Edwards and the lockdown defense of Rudy Gobert, but Towns' contributions cannot and should not be ignored.

The 28-year-old was an All-Star this season for Minnesota, averaging 22.8 points per game on 50.6/42.3/87.4 shooting splits to go along with 8.4 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. Towns has proven to be an outstandingly efficient secondary scorer, and his floor spacing has been invaluable for this team.

The Western Conference is as loaded as it has been in a very long time, meaning for Minnesota to make some noise, they're going to need their team fully healthy. Having the duo of Edwards and Towns scoring alongside their league-leading defense, Minnesota can compete with the best of them.

It remains to be seen what kind of minutes restriction Towns will be on, but there's a decent chance that come playoff time, we can see Towns playing in around the 32.8 minutes per game he averaged in the regular season.