Towns is dealing with a thumb ailment ahead of Knicks-Timberwolves, and New York can't afford to be without him much longer.

Karl-Anthony Towns missed his second straight game because of a sprained right thumb, sitting out against his former team when the New York Knicks hosted Minnesota on Friday night.

Towns has missed the Knicks' last two games after injuring his Thumb during a Jan. 13 loss to the Detroit Pistons. The star center played through discomfort, posting 26 points and 12 rebounds on 7-of-17 shooting from the field, 4-of-9 from three and 8-of-10 from the free-throw line. He declined to say whether he underwent X-rays following the loss.

New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns explains how nice it felt to hit a couple threes against Memphis and details why Josh Hart should be an All-Star. Plus, Precious Achiuwa explains how his hamstring is feeling after returning from injury in December.

After taking apart two of the hottest teams in the Western Conference, next up for the surging Knicks will be welcoming the challenge of the reigning league MVP. Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, who has earned that award in three of the previous four years,