Ramona ShelburneESPN Senior Writer11:07 AM ET3 Minute Read
After missing nearly four months with a Class 3 calf strain, Minnesota Timberwolves forward Karl-Anthony Towns plans to return for Wednesday’s game against the Atlanta Hawks, he told ESPN.
Cities will conduct one final check ahead of the game, but he said he expects to play for the first time since November 28.
“I’m super excited to get back on the pitch and help my team because these next nine games are super important,” said Towns.
Minnesota (36-37) is currently ranked ninth in the Western Conference rankings.
Towns said that despite the lengthy rehabilitation process he’s been through over the past four months, he doesn’t expect any restrictions once he’s back.
“I’m just trying to pick up where I left off,” Towns said. “I told my father just before my injury that I felt the most complete as a player in my career. From the defensive end, from the offensive end, from the mental aspect to the leadership aspect… I felt very complete.”
Towns, who sustained the injury in a game against the Washington Wizards, said a Grade 3 calf sprain was “really just a tear.”
“If you have a torn calf, that matters,” Towns said. “It takes time. And with my size, you don’t want it to be like KD in Golden State.”
Towns originally thought he would be out for a few months, but six weeks into the rehabilitation process he suffered “a major setback” that essentially sent him back to the beginning of the process.
“Return is imminent, and then boom,” Towns said. “Do a little too much. It’s essentially just retorted. And now we’re back to square one.”
The second time the rehab took longer. Towns wore a boot on his lower leg for months. Occasionally blood would pool in the area where the muscle was torn and he would have to have it drained.
“It wouldn’t heal if we didn’t drain it,” Towns said. “I still have pictures of the syringe they used to remove it.”
The hardest part was not being able to watch games from the bench.
“Because of the blood and everything, I can’t lay out my leg like that,” Towns said. “We tested it once. I was in the tunnel, so the fans didn’t see me. But the 15 minutes that I stood there with the boot my legs hurt so much, ‘I have to go backwards’ [and] put my leg up I’ve watched the game. So the fans never saw me at the game, but I was in the back of the dressing room watching it.”
Throughout the season, Towns kept a notebook of his observations of the team. He would share them with teammates and coaches – anything to feel like he’s contributing.
“I don’t feel like I’ve lost the step,” Towns said. “I actually took steps because I was able to learn from another aspect in a way I’ve never seen just sitting on the sidelines.
“I think every time I step out onto the pitch, I can make a difference. But especially we’re struggling a lot with free throws right now and I’ve always been a really good free throw shooter. I think that’s for the shooting – technically it’s going to be great to add that kind of 3-point component to us.”
Towns also believes his return will help Anthony Edwards.
“I’ve been telling Ant since day one, I want to see him be great and reach a level of greatness. And I can help him with that,” Towns said. “Ant is young and I want to make his job as easy as possible, make the big money and do the hard stuff, and I can do that.”
He thinks he can do the same for Rudy Gobert, Minnesota’s big offseason acquisition.
“So for me, with Rudy, I just want to keep putting him in positions to be successful,” Towns said. “There are things that just aren’t the way he is and that’s okay. I want him to be who he is. If he’s anywhere near that basket, I don’t think many people in this world can stop him.”