MINNEAPOLIS --- As the 2015-16 NBA season wends through its final two days of play, it is becoming increasingly clear that Karl-Anthony Towns of the Minnesota Timberwolves will capture the prestigious Rookie of the Year award.
The 7-foot, 244-pound was the No.1 overall pick of last June's draft. A product of the University of Kentucky, the 20-year old center is averaging 18.2 points, 10.4 rebounds and 1.7 blocks through 81 games this season.
Among the other Rookie of the Year candidates include 7-foot-3 Kristaps Porzingis of the New York Knicks, 6-foot-11 pivot Jahlil Okafor of the Philadelphia 76ers, Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets and wingman Justise Winslow of the Miami Heat.
But Towns, who is also known as Big Kat, has separated himself from the field by being named as Western Conference player of the month from November to February, a feat surpassing teammate Andrew Wiggins, last year's Rookie of the Year winner.
Porzingis, a Latvian native, was a shoo-in for the award early in the season but his numbers have dipped following a head coaching change in New York where Derek Fisher was replaced by Kurt Rambis.
While at Kentucky, Towns studied Kinesiology and is currently taking online classes with hopes of becoming a doctor after his NBA career is said and done. Towns' dad is a former player who currently coaches the Piscataway Technical High School in New Jersey. Towns' mother is Jacqueline Cruz, a native of the Dominican Republic.
Winning accolades is nothing new to Towns. While in college, he won SEC Freshman of the Year honors. While in high school in 2014, he was named a McDonalds All-American.
Towns is signed to a multi-year contract that pays him $5.7 million this season. Porzingis, meanwhile, is being paid $4.1 million this season by the Knicks.
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