NBA Trade Rumors: Teams monitoring Minnesota Timberwolves with Karl-Anthony Towns' future in doubt

The Karl-Anthony Towns-led Minnesota Timberwolves have been an underwhelming outfit this year, which has led to them being the subject of various NBA trade rumors. They are currently 14th in the Western Conference standings and it looks like the franchise is headed towards the NBA lottery.

NBA Trade Rumors: Teams keeping an eye on the Minnesota Timberwolves' situation; Karl-Anthony Towns might leave

Minnesota Timberwolves v Brooklyn Nets

According to Bleacher Report's Eric Pincus, franchises across the league are keeping track of the Minnesota Timberwolves' current situation. There have been mumblings of Karl-Anthony Towns leaving, and naturally, no team would like to miss out on an All-NBA-caliber center.

Minnesota Timberwolves v Phoenix Suns

Karl-Anthony Towns has been at his usual best for the Minnesota Timberwolves, averaging a solid 24.8 points, 10.8 rebounds and 4.6 assists on 39% shooting from behind the 3-point arc. He missed a major chunk of games due to Covid-19 but has been highly influential since making a comeback to the court.

Teams are looking closely at the Timberwolves' future, per @EricPincus "The 'KAT wanting to be elsewhere' chatter increased drastically over the year." pic.twitter.com/CaJ7pWVJ69

— NBA Central (@TheNBACentral) April 30, 2021

The Minnesota Timberwolves made an ambitious move last season by pairing Karl-Anthony Towns with his good friend D'Angelo Russell, but the partnership has not been fruitful so far. Russell has struggled with injuries this season, which has been one of the major reasons behind the Minnesota Timberwolves' struggles.

Karl-Anthony Towns appeared in his 400th NBA game last night. Some career numbers:✅ 22.9 PPG✅ 11.7 RPG✅ 609 3PMTowns is one of 141 players in NBA history with 500+ 3PM through their first 400 games. He is the only player in that group to average 20+ PPG and 10+ RPG. pic.twitter.com/JMb3TYhnV4

— Justin Kubatko (@jkubatko) April 30, 2021

If these NBA trade rumors are to be believed, the Timberwolves might dismantle their squad next season. A rebuild can be considered, resulting in both Russell and Towns - who are in their prime - looking for a new destination. The Wolves ended up with the no.1 overall pick in the 2020 draft, and it seems like tanking is the most viable option for the franchise at the moment.

The Minnesota Timberwolves have looked a bit convincing in their last few games, winning four matches in a row. Two of those wins have come against no.1 seed the Utah Jazz, with Karl-Anthony Towns playing a key role in all these wins.

However, it looks like we might see the former no.1 overall pick in a new franchise come next season.