NBA Market Share Report: Wendell Carter Jr. Is Showing Early Signs of Success in His Rookie Campaign

Missing Value in KAT

With Jimmy Butler and his trade demands continuing to dominate headlines, it hasn’t necessarily been an easy start to the season in Minnesota.

But Jimmy isn’t the only guy drawing negative attention.

Whether it’s an effect of said turmoil, Butler’s barking during practice, or something else entirely, Karl-Anthony Towns has lacked consistency to start the year, making him more of a risky play depending on game format.

Towns’ accumulative production has been on par with what we probably expected -- he ranks second behind Joel Embiid as the top-producing center through roughly the first month of the season. But when you look at Towns from a value standpoint, he’s been a little too hit or miss, which has been a combination between high salary and an overall lack of efficient production.

Posting at least five-times value just three times in 12 games this season, Towns’ average salary of $9,433 is enough to strongly hamper a roster when it barely returns 40 FanDuel points a night. Combine that with the fact that Towns is shooting just 44 percent from the field (as a career 54 percent scorer) and you end up with more than your fair share of disappointing and (usually) losing lineups.

When the price is right -- somewhere around $9,000 or below -- Towns provides attractive upside and a decent shot at reaching value. But until we start seeing either a) more efficient offense, b) lower salaries, or c) a combination of the two, Towns is a tough play to get behind.

Minnesota takes on the Kings tonight, followed by the Nets and Pelicans next week.