NBA 2017-18: 5 Players with the highest on/off-court differentials

#4 Karl-Anthony Towns - 13.1

Towns dunks on Capela

By all accounts, Karl-Anthony Towns has made rapid strides in each of his first three seasons in the league. After landing at Minnesota as the #1 overall pick in 2015, KAT was deemed to be the most NBA-ready prospect in that draft class and was also slated to be the one with the highest value.

Towns' shooting splits during the regular season were historic numbers for any center: he's the only center in the league to slash a line of 54.5% from the field, 42.1% from 3-point range and 85.8% from the free throw line.

While his points per game average took a hit due to Butler's arrival as the #1 option, he continued to develop on the defensive end, and one could see him anchoring an above-average NBA defense in the near future. The fact that the Wolves' defense yielded about 3 points more per 100 possessions when he sat is a clear indicator of his defensive advancement.

The Minnesota Timberwolves possessed a net rating of 5.9 points per 100 possessions with KAT on the court. This figure dropped to a lowly -7.2 points per 100 possessions with him off it, giving him the fourth-best on/off court differential in the Association.