ATLANTA — Begrudgingly, Karl-Anthony Towns understands he may have to change aspects of his game as offensive fouls pile up amid the increasingly watchful eyes of the referees.
“I’m going to keep doing my thing. Maybe I’ll have to change my game up a little bit, if that’s what they’re trying to tell me I need to do,” Towns said. “[The refs] didn’t tell anyone else that, but they’re telling me that. Maybe I have to do that.”
Towns entered Saturday’s game against the Hawks with 31 offensive fouls, by far the most in the NBA. Jaren Jackson Jr. was second with 24.
The whistles aren’t new — Towns led the NBA the previous two seasons in offensive fouls — but the volume has increased, and there seems to be a focus on his hook move with the off arm, which Towns sometimes uses to get around defenders.
Jalen Brunson said the team relayed to KAT the importance of avoiding the hook foul, adding that he’s seen progress.
“Well, refs have meetings, refs watch film and they do their homework as well. And I think they go into games figuring out what they need to watch for. And KAT just has to do a better job of not using his off arm,” Brunson said. “And we tried to explain that to him. And he’s getting better at it. I think even the minor contact stuff that he does gets called for offensive fouls.
“So it’s all about an adjustment period. And then figuring out how to be effective without doing that. And control what you can control.”
Brunson likewise combats a narrative as a player often accused of initiating contact and baiting fouls. Depending on who you ask, that reputation impacts the number of foul shots Brunson receives.
The point guard was 15th in free-throw attempts per game heading into Saturday, and there’s an argument Brunson should be higher based on how often he handles the ball and drives.
“Who gives a s–t about what people say about you, what the narrative is,” Brunson said. “Help your team win. Do that and move on. Who cares what people say?”
Still, it’s a lot harder to help the team win while frequently battling foul trouble. Towns, for instance, was derailed Christmas within just 2 ½ minutes.
His first offensive foul was 54 seconds after tipoff, with the referee whistling Towns for the right-arm hook as he dribbled past Cavaliers defender Jarrett Allen.
The second foul, just about 90 seconds after that, was more ambiguous — a light reach under the basket on Dean Wade.
Towns was forced to the bench early and finished with just 11 points in 27 minutes.
“I get the hook part,” Towns said Friday. “But you know, there’s a lot of other things that I think they have conversations and do studies on.
“I’m going to keep lifting,” the center added, perhaps implying that his size and strength works against him in the eyes of the refs. “I’m going to keep lifting.”
While open to altering some of his game to accommodate the whistle tendencies, Towns also seems confused about what to do, specifically.
“I’m just trying to put W’s on the board. As long as I keep impacting winning and doing what I’m supposed to do to help this team win is fine,” Towns said. “We’ll figure out the other part. I still have my own personal questions about it.”
Are the refs providing him with explanations?
“You won’t like the explanations,” he answered. “You didn’t like them last year and they’re not getting better this year.”
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
