Karl-Anthony Towns has just saved the New York Knicks' season. His 24 points (20 in the fourth quarter) in Game 3 helped the team complete a rally from another 20-point deficit to avoid a 3-0 hole. Despite his heroics, Towns has not had the best series in the Eastern Conference Finals, which should serve as a warning for Charlotte Hornets center Mark Williams.
The three-year pro is still well below Towns in stature and skill level. However, there are plenty of similarities in their game in that they are both offensive-minded bigs with glaring defensive shortcomings. At least the Knicks star has elite post-up and outside shooting weapons, just a few tools Williams has yet to add to his bag.
Still, it might be far-fetched to think that KAT should be a cautionary tale for Williams when the five-time All-star has been a key reason behind New York's conference finals run.
On the other hand, he may also be at fault for the squad losing the first two games of the series at home and nearly having to deal with an unsurmountable deficit.
Mark Williams should learn from Karl-Anthony Towns' ECF performance
In Game 1, Towns had a memorable performance, putting up 35 points and 12 rebounds, but when Jalen Brunson had to take an extended breather because of foul trouble, the Knicks couldn't protect their massive lead. The following contest saw the KAT spend time on the bench during crunch time, as coach Tom Thibodeau opted to use Mitchell Robinson at the five to give the squad more in the rebounding and defense departments.
For a while on Sunday, it looked like Towns was again going to sit down the stretch, this time due to foul trouble and cold shooting (he had a mere four points before the final period). However, he caught fire in the nick of time to help prevent the Knicks from falling into an insurmountable hole in the series. Of course, he had a lot of help, including Thibodeau going out of character and extending his rotation to keep his players fresh.
It remains to be seen if New York can win another meeting on the road or if the Pacers can again take advantage of Towns' weakness as a rim protector. Recent history has shown that big men who aren't worth a lick on defense, even though they can be productive on offense, can be run off the floor in the postseason.
It might be too early for the Hornets to be concerned by that trend. But if they want to one day become true contenders for the NBA crown, they would have to seriously think about whether Williams is the right guy to anchor the paint for them. He can prove his mettle in Charlotte, though, by refining his defense. Another way is to develop his jumper and extend his range to the 3-point line to become an even bigger threat on offense like Towns is.