The rarest combination of attributes in the NBA is probably a player capable of blocking shots at a high level while also shooting from the perimeter. Serge Ibaka is one of the NBA’s only current examples of this type of player, while Rasheed Wallace and Robert Horry are high on that list historically.

There are two such players in this draft in Karl-Anthony Towns and Myles Turner, but Towns is of course on a whole another level has an all-around player and the clear-cut best overall prospect in the 2015 NBA Draft. Whenever I’ve studied Towns this year, I always think he’s basketball’s version of a unicorn in that we’ve never seen a big man entering the league project as strongly in those two areas.

The common refrain is that Jahlil Okafor would have easily been the number one overall pick at any point in the previous century due to how the game has evolved, but I’m not sure that’s as true as we’ve been led to believe. We’ve been primed to accept a big man who can shoot the ball from the NBA three-point line and also put the ball on deck in ways where Towns would only have existed in Europe during that era, but had he emerged at any point in time fully formed like this, it’s too tempting of a skill-set to put back in a narrow box of big man expectations.

Towns shot 81.3 percent on free throws during his freshman season at Kentucky and he really wasn’t allowed to shoot three-pointers while there, attempting only eight. The workouts in which Towns is draining three-pointer after three-pointer show that will become an aspect of his game on the next level if he’s used in that way.

A pick-and-roll or pick-and-pop with Towns is an unguardable play because he’s a true triple threat 7-footer. Towns is as adept driving to rim as he is hitting a catch-and-shoot three-pointer or finding a spot-up shooter in the corner if the defense rotates.

Chris Bosh posted similar shooting numbers during his freshman season at Georgia Tech and he’s of course developed into one of the league’s best face-up scorers. Bosh has been a power forward asked to play bigger at various points in his career whereas Towns is a center that can slide down to power forward.

Towns more closely resembles Joel Embiid in terms of his passing and low post game. Towns had an excellent assist rate of 11.5 percent (similar to Embiid), though his turnover percentage was much better at 14.4 percent compared to 22.0 percent. Towns and Embiid showed similar potential in the low post, though neither has the sophisticated footwork and counters of Okafor.

There were glimpses of Towns being capable of take over a game in the low post against Notre Dame in the tournament, but we’ll need to see that level of consistency develop in time against players with similar size and strength. Building that low post game over time to add to the arsenal of his jumper and attacking the bucket will make him one of the league’s most versatile high efficiency scorers.

Towns has the length and mobility to defend both centers and power forwards in the NBA and his shotblocking rate was comparable to Greg Oden at Ohio State. Oden was such a unique shotblocker that the comparison is a little kind to Towns, but his length and intelligence is undeniable. Towns also has better lateral quickness and will be able to defend the perimeter in an effective way. In other words, Towns won’t need to come off the court no matter how small the other team goes.

There will need to be a higher consistency of commitment on the defensive end of the floor and that will likely slide up and down depending on his usage on offense and how he’s coached.

Towns has the height and length of Hassan Whiteside at a solid 6’11 and a 9’5 standing reach. Towns, however, is probably stronger at 19 than Whiteside is at 26. The basketball IQ and self-awareness differential between the two players is beyond immense. Towns has great intangibles and would be as ideal of a foundational piece from a work ethic and character standpoint as he is on pure on-court talent. 

Towns has been an underrated prospect in this draft. Towns isn’t quite as polished and proven at the 30-minutes per game mark the way Anthony Davis was, but he’s basically the center version of Davis. Towns is perhaps the most jack of all trades center prospect in NBA history and he really could become a master of them all to become one of the best two or three players in the league.

When we say “potential”, we also implicitly mean a player may potentially not reach it. This is categorically true with Towns who has a considerable amount of work to fulfill this extraordinary promise. But unlike other high ceiling players, Towns has a very high floor as a shotblocker and athletic offensive player.