Karl Towns
| No. 44 | |
|---|---|
| Center | |
| Personal information | |
| Born | November 15, 1995 |
| Nationality | American / Dominican |
| Listed height | 7 ft 0 in (213 cm) |
| Listed weight | 243 lb (110 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | St. Joseph (Metuchen, New Jersey) |
| College | Kentucky |
Karl-Anthony Towns (born November 15, 1995) is a Dominican American basketball player who is playing his senior season for St. Joseph High School during the 2013–14 season. He was named to the Dominican Republic national basketball team Olympic squad as a 16-year old.
Early years
Towns grew up in Piscataway, New Jersey, where he attended Lake Nelson Seventh-Day Adventist School, he then Theodore Schor Middle School and repeated seventh grade after transferring in from Our Lady of Fatima School in 2009.[1]
High school career
As a freshman at St. Joseph High School, Towns led the basketball team to a state championship in 2012, earning himself the top position in the ESPN 25 national ranking of high school players.[2] Towns was selected at the age of 16 to play on the Dominican Republic national basketball team, which represents that nation in international competition.[2] Towns was eligible based on the fact that his mother is from the Dominican Republic. During 2011 and 2012 competitions, John Calipari, head coach at the University of Kentucky and a former NBA head coach, coached the team, which finished third in the 2011 FIBA Americas Championship and fourth place at the 2012 FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament for Men, falling one position short of qualifying for the 2012 Olympic Basketball Tournament.[3]
In December 2012, Towns announced that he was going to graduate a year early from high school and commit to play on the Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team under Coach Calipari, who had coached him as part of the national team of the Dominican Republic. ESPN, which had ranked him as the top prospect in the 2015 recruiting class listed him as third-ranked in its 2014 class.[4]
References
- ↑ Pompey, Keith. "A towering hoops talent – and only in eighth grade", The Philadelphia Inquirer, May 29, 2011. Accessed December 20, 2012. "The Piscataway, N.J., native won't turn 16 until Nov. 15. He's a straight A eighth grader at Theodore Schor Middle School. Towns did, however, repeat the seventh grade after transferring from Our Lady of Fatima School two years ago."
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Parker, Brandon. "Towns Jr. going global; N.J. native, 16, will play for the Dominican Republic during Olympic qualifying", ESPN, June 18, 2012. Accessed December 20, 2012. "But Towns is much more than a charismatic guy with a pair of size 20 shoes. For one, the rising sophomore helped his St. Joseph (Metuchen, N.J.) team to a state title this winter before taking the No. 1 spot in the recently released ESPN 25. Even more impressively, Towns' clout reached international status in May when he was named to the Dominican Republic National Team that will attempt to qualify for the London Olympics in July."
- ↑ Braziller, Zach. "Towns looms as New Jersey’s new hoops stud", New York Post, October 27, 2012. Accessed December 21, 2012. "He has taken visits to Duke, North Carolina and Kentucky and played on the Dominican Republic National Team, coached by Kentucky’s John Calipari, in the London Olympics."
- ↑ Telep, Dave. "Karl Towns Jr. commits to Kentucky", ESPN, December 4, 2012. Accessed December 20,2012. "Previously the nation's No. 1 sophomore in the 2015 ESPN 25, the 6-foot-11 Towns also announced he intends to reclassify to the junior class and graduate a year earlier than expected. He slides into the No. 3 ranking in the 2014 ESPN 60."