Karl-Anthony Towns

Karl-Anthony Towns cared very little about the Golden State Warriors’ pursuit of the best regular season in NBA history. In his rookie campaign for the Minnesota Timberwolves, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2015 draft arrived in Oakland to square off against a Warriors squad that had produced a 69-8 record to that point, including 37 wins in 38 tries on their home court. Towns got Klay Thompson to jump out of his sneakers with a deceptive fake before encountering Steph Curry and Harrison Barnes on a drive and flicking a contested layup into the bucket with his right hand. The clutch shot in a pressure-cooker situation gave the underdog Timberwolves a four-point lead with under a minute to play in overtime, and Golden State never got closer than that the rest of the way. Towns logged 20 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and two blocks in the stunning 124-117 triumph on April 5, 2016 in Golden State’s final loss of its record-setting 73-win season. Towns would be named NBA Rookie of the Year not long after, finishing his first season with averages of 18.3 points, 10.5 rebounds and 1.7 blocks while starting all 82 games for Minnesota.

Rookie of the Year

Rookie Year