Karl-Anthony Towns Ruled out vs. Knicks with Concussion from Car Crash

Minnesota Timberwolves big man Karl-Anthony Towns will not play Friday against the New York Knicks, as T'Wolves head coach Ryan Saunders told ESPN's Ian Begley that Towns is in concussion protocol. 

Towns suffered the injury in a car crash he was involved in Thursday while driving to the airport. Friday marks the first regular-season game Towns has missed during his four-year NBA career.

Towns has developed into Minnesota's franchise cornerstone since it used a No. 1 overall pick on him out of Kentucky in 2015.

He was the 2015-16 Rookie of the Year and took a leap in 2016-17 with 25.1 points, 12.3 rebounds and 1.3 blocks a night and followed with 21.3 points, 12.3 boards and 1.4 blocks a night in 2017-18.

So far this season, Towns is averaging 23.1 points, 12.0 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.8 blocks per contest.

Towns is one of the most promising young stars in the league, and he can put Minnesota's entire offense on his back when needed. He can score in the post or extend his game beyond the three-point line and is a solid rebounding presence as well.

While the Timberwolves can't reasonably expect anyone to replicate Towns' production, they will likely turn toward the combination of Dario Saric, Taj Gibson and Anthony Tolliver to play most of the frontcourt minutes while the Kentucky product is out.

Although the T-Wolves may be able to beat the struggling Knicks without Towns, they can ill afford to play without him for an extended period of time, as they are four games out of a playoff spot in the Western Conference.