How Dallas Mavericks Must Be More 'Aware' to Contain Timberwolves' Karl-Anthony Towns in Game 5

Karl-Anthony Towns broke out of a slump to score 20 of his 25 points in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals after halftime. Can the Dallas Mavericks slow him down?

May 28, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) reacts against the Dallas Mavericks during the fourth quarter of game four of the western conference finals for the 2024 NBA playoffs at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports / Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

MINNEAPOLIS — After averaging 15.0 points per game in the Western Conference finals entering Game 4, Karl-Anthony Towns delivered a dynamic performance necessary for the Minnesota Timberwolves to win 105-100 and avoid being eliminated by the Dallas Mavericks. Despite playing through foul trouble, he scored 20 of his 25 points in the second half.

“Being aggressive,” Towns said. “Ain’t no time to have any doubts in your mind, especially at this time, it’s Game 4, down 3-0. Ain’t no time to have any doubts.”

May 28, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) reacts against the Dallas Mavericks during the fourth quarter of game four of the western conference finals for the 2024 NBA playoffs at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports / Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

Minnesota trusted Towns would find his form at some point in this series, as any great player tends to do, and he delivered. Throughout the series Timberwolves coach Chris Finch has emphasized the importance for Towns to slow down in how he's playing and felt he achieved it in Game 4.

"KAT's a great player," Finch said. "His struggles were not going to last forever. He got himself going. Even when he got deep in foul trouble, we left him out there. ... Just let him roll, and he played smart, played under control, rebounded really well for us, executed defensively. Really proud of him. Tonight was a great step for him."

Edwards echoed Finch's sentiment, praising Towns for continuing to stay aggressive and not dwell on recent performances, saying, "He was super confident,” he said. “He wasn’t worried about any shots previous to the shots that he hit tonight. He played exceptionally well.”

Late in Game 4, Towns used two catch-and-shoot 3-pointers to help solidify the Timberwolves' outlook to close it out while scoring 10 points overall with three makes from the perimeter. It turned the tide for Minnesota to retake the lead. Luka Doncic acknowledged the need for Dallas to tighten up how the team is guarding Towns.

“I think he hit two big threes for them when we were up one," Doncic said of Towns. "That was really clutch. We got to do a better job on him.”

Kyrie Irving shared his respect for the skill set Towns provides the Timberwolves, describing some of the criticism the star big man has received as unfair.

"Despite the criticism that he's received... the unfair criticism at times, even though he's not shooting the ball particularly well, or he didn't shoot for the first three games, he's a great player," Irving said of Towns. "I respect him. I know my peers respect them, and my teammates respect him."

Without Dereck Lively II available to play due to a neck sprain, the Mavericks had less capable personnel to protect the paint while being able to stay home more on shooters. Towns was also able to attack the paint with more effectiveness than compared to previous performances.

"Some of the shots that he was hitting tonight, he missed in the first three games, and he was getting to the rim, but we have bigs there contesting his shot, so it was a little bit tougher," Irving said.

Entering Game 5, Irving emphasized the importance of being more dialed into where Towns is on the floor and how the Timberwolves are running actions for him to get clean looks. Minnesota has often used flare screens and corner pin-ins during this series to free up space for Towns, but he struggled to knock down shots consistently until Game 4.

"There were again, in the fourth quarter, and looking back at some of those plays that he took advantage of, it was top of the key," Irving said. "They were running the same play, then some flare screens where he was the catch-and-shoot recipient. We just got to be aware of him where he's moving on the floor.

"He's trying to hide behind the defense and get some easy ones. That's what great players do," Irving explained. "They figure it out, and it's a series... I expected him to at least come out with the aggression to put his team in a great position to win the ballgame, and he did, so he accomplished that, and now we move forward."

It remains to be seen if Lively will be available for Game 5 since he entered Thursday as questionable on the injury report. Whether he can play or not, the Mavericks must slow down Towns in Game 5, considering Anthony Edwards is going to get him regardless.

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