UPDATE 12/25: Towns is questionable for Thursday’s game vs. the Kings. He has missed the past four games due to a knee injury.
UPDATE 12/23: Towns will remain out of the lineup for Monday night’s game vs. the Golden State Warriors, per coach Ryan Saunders.
Ryan Saunders says Karl Anthony Towns will not play tonight vs. Warriors.
— Nick Friedell (@NickFriedell) December 24, 2019
This isn’t anything new as Towns has missed the past couple games with a knee injury. Andrew Wiggins is again a very good GPP play on DK.
UPDATE: Towns has officially been ruled out for Friday’s game vs. the Nuggets.
Ryan Saunders said Karl-Anthony Towns is OUT again tonight. They’ll see on Culver.
— Chris Hine (@ChristopherHine) December 21, 2019
This is as we expected, so nothing really new here. Towns should be out for the foreseeable future and is basically considered day-to-day. With no KAT, Wiggins is a solid play again carrying the T-Wolves offense and Dieng should start again in place of Towns. Dieng is a decent value play on DraftKings. Culver is available to play despite an illness.
UPDATE: Towns and Culver were both able to go through shootaround this afternoon, but KAT was limited a bit. It’s still encouraging, but my feeling is Towns will be held out regardless.
Towns was able to do a “little bit” in shootaround, Saunders said. Culver participated fully https://t.co/kmubkYiAgi
— Chris Hine (@ChristopherHine) December 20, 2019
UPDATE #6: Towns is officially being listed as questionable to play Friday vs. the Denver Nuggets.
Both are officially listed as questionable.
— Chris Hine (@ChristopherHine) December 19, 2019
Towns did not practice Thursday and neither did Jarrett Culver, however both are traveling with the team to Denver. We had the earlier report from The Athletic with Towns potentially missing a few games, but he could come back tomorrow it seems. We’ll have to wait and see.
UPDATE #5: Towns could miss multiple games due to his knee injury, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic reported Thursday. The report states that it’s “definitely possible” Towns could miss some time, which isn’t good for the T-Wolves considering their performance last night vs. the Pels. With this news, we’ll still have to keep an eye out for updates on Towns, but in the short-term, we can expect Jeff Teague and Andrew Wiggins to continue to step up and take on offensive responsibility. Gorgui Dieng should continue to start in place of Towns, so he isn’t a bad season-long fantasy basketball pickup.
UPDATE #4: Just getting this now, but Roberto Covington is not in the starting lineup due to a coach’s decision. He is available to play though.
Covington is not in the lineup due to coach's decision. It is not trade related.
— Jon Krawczynski (@JonKrawczynski) December 19, 2019
This is a bit odd, I’m not sure how to approach this. He could play a normal amount of minutes off the bench with the T-Wolves thin. He also could be getting discipline, but there wasn’t any word of that prior. My guess is it’s a matchups thing and Covington will play around 20-25 minutes tonight, per usual.
UPDATE #3: In a surprise move, the T-Wolves have ruled out rookie guard Jarrett Culver for Wednesday night due to an illness.
Jarrett Culver also out tonight with an illness
— Jon Krawczynski (@JonKrawczynski) December 19, 2019
No Culver means more Josh Okogie and Jeff Teague, plus no KAT tonight makes the T-Wolves very thin. I’d explore maybe looking at the spread on the Pelicans right now. The game should me much closer, though 4.5 points isn’t steep enough really.
UPDATE #2: Towns is officially out for Wednesday night’s game vs. the Pelicans.
Tonight's @mayoclinicsport Injury Report:
— Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) December 18, 2019
Karl-Anthony Towns (Left Knee Sprain) and Jake Layman (Left Toe Sprain) are OUT vs. New Orleans. pic.twitter.com/Ce2ZTbFuEB
So that was the big slate news we were looking for and we’ve got plenty of time to react, which is nice. Andre Wiggins ($7,600) is my favorite all-around DFS play on DraftKings tonight. I think his recent form, the matchup and price is all perfect. Cash games and GPPs. We should see more of Jordan Bell, Gorgui Dieng and Keita Bates-Diop in the front court as well. I don’t mind Jeff Teague ($5,800) at his price point with no KAT. Should be more aggressive on offense.
UPDATE: Towns is being listed as questionable for Wednesday’s game vs. the Pelicans.
Karl-Anthony Towns is officially listed as questionable for tomorrow’s game against New Orleans.
— Dane Moore (@DaneMooreNBA) December 17, 2019
When asked today at practice what KAT is dealing with, Ryan Saunders said “he’s banged up.”
The injury listing says “knee”
Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns is “banged up” heading into Wednesday’s matchup vs. the New Orleans Pelicans, per coach Ryan Saunders.
Saunders mentions that KAT is “banged up.” Will see how he responds today going into the Pelicans game tomorrow
— Jon Krawczynski (@JonKrawczynski) December 17, 2019
Minnesota will see how KAT responds to treatment and if he’ll be able to play Wednesday in a great fantasy basketball spot vs. the Pelicans, who 29th in defensive rating and 23rd in rebounding percentage.
Fantasy Basketball Analysis: Minnesota Timberwolves C Karl-Anthony Towns
So we can expect KAT to at least be questionable heading into this game. If that’s the case, he is in danger of missing out, so we have to plan accordingly. If Towns sits, Gorgui Dieng will likely start at center, though his value may not jump up too much. I’d imagine Saunders goes with smaller lineups potentially featuring Robert Covington, Andrew Wiggins, Jarrett Culver, Josh Okogie and Jeff Teague. Jordan Bell and Keita Bates-Diop could also see a few more minutes off the bench. For now, it’s a wait-and-see situation.