Kendrick Perkins elevates Karl-Anthony Towns to Top 5 MVP list after series of big performances
Karl-Anthony Towns is thriving in the Big Apple, helping the New York Knicks to a 15-9 record and the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference through 24 games. On Monday night, the Knicks picked up their fifth win in their last six games behind another strong performance from Towns.
Towns has caught the attention of one NBA analyst: Kendrick Perkins. On Monday, Perkins gave the Knicks big man Most Valuable Player attention with a post on X.
"KAT (Karl-Anthony Towns) has definitely entered into the Top 5 early MVP conversation," Perkins tweeted following New York's 113-108 win over the Toronto Raptors.
New York is finding its stride with Towns in the lineup, having sent Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo to Minnesota to bring in the four-time All-Star. Through a quarter of the season, Towns is already paying dividends as the team's second-leading scorer and the NBA's second-leading rebounder.
He has appeared in 21 games this season, averaging 25.2 points, 13.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists, shooting 53.1% from the field and 45% from 3-point range. He carried his momentum into Monday night's contest, adding to what's been a stellar start to the season.
Karl-Anthony Towns extends double-double streak, leads Knicks to win
Karl-Anthony Towns led the Knicks to their 15th win of the season over Toronto. Towns led the team in scoring and led the game in rebounding in yet another double-double performance.
Towns scored 24 points on 7-of-11 shooting, connecting on two of his five 3-point attempts. He also grabbed 15 rebounds, dished out six assists, swatted two shots and plucked two steals on the defensive side of the ball.
With his 24-point, 15-rebound performance, Towns extended his double-double streak to 13 games, dating back to New York's matchup versus the Philadelphia 76ers on Nov. 12. During this stretch, Towns has been averaging 25.4 ppg, 13.9 rpg, 3.5 apg, 0.9 spg and 0.9 bpg.
Towns and the Knicks will be back at the Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night to take on the Atlanta Hawks, looking to continue their upward trend.