Karl-Anthony Towns is under contract for six more years after agreeing to an extension Friday to remain with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
It’s a big commitment on the part of the Timberwolves, and they did it as quickly as possible: Starting in 2024-25, Towns will earn $224 million over four years, and that’s on top of the $70 million he’s scheduled to earn over the next two seasons.
The deal was formally agreed to early Friday. Under NBA rule, Towns and the Timberwolves had to wait until July 1, and it was shortly after midnight in the East, to close the deal.
Towns bounced back deftly during the 2021-22 season from a rough couple of years, when he was dogged by a wrist injury and plagued by COVID-19 like so many other players. The virus also hit him especially close to home, when his mother died early in the pandemic in 2020 after the NBA went on hiatus.
The 26-year-old, who is entering his eighth NBA season, continued to diversify his offensive game in coach Chris Finch’s system and was more aggressive in getting the ball to the basket. His versatility was never more evident than when he won the 3-point shooting contest on All-Star weekend, but he’s still a post player at heart.
In the final three games of Minnesota’s six-game loss to Memphis in the first round of the playoffs, Towns averaged 26.3 points, 12.0 rebounds and 1.3 blocks. During the regular season, he posted a career-high 60-point game in San Antonio in 36 minutes on March 14.
By being voted third-team All-NBA, Towns became eligible for another supermax deal, the second contract extension he received from the Timberwolves since they first drafted him from Kentucky in 2015.
