Souhan: Reunion with Karl-Anthony Towns comes amid emotion and uncertainty

Two weeks ago, Kirk Cousins returned to Minnesota, heard jeers from Vikings fans at U.S. Bank Stadium and produced a performance that would lead, nine days later, to the Atlanta Falcons benching a quarterback they had just paid $180 million.

Thursday night, Karl-Anthony Towns returned to Minnesota, beamed as he received a standing ovation at Target Center and made his first shot — a three-pointer, of course — for his new team. His Knicks went on to rout the Wolves 133-107.

Maybe there have been two more momentous Minnesota reunions in short order than those of Cousins and KAT, but not in recent memory.

Cousins was a highly paid franchise quarterback. Towns was a maximum-salary All-Star. The Vikings signed Cousins to take them to a Super Bowl. The Timberwolves landed the first pick in the 2015 draft, causing Flip Saunders to cry in public, then chose Towns to be their savior.

Both spent time as the faces of their team, and both wore many faces while bearing that responsibility, from frowns to grimaces to the occasional grin.

Neither delivered a title, both became targets of fan angst, and both left, under quite different circumstances, to join talented teams.

Cousins’ story seems all but over. He is overpaid and, at 36, has won one playoff game.

Towns is writing a different story. The Wolves’ trade of Towns for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo took him to New York, where he has excelled with the Knicks. Entering Thursday night’s game, he was averaging 24.8 points and a league-best 13.9 rebounds, as well as 3.3 assists, 1.0 blocks and 0.9 steals. His rebounding total would be a career high, and he is averaging 2.5 turnovers, his lowest rate since 2017-18.

The Vikings won when Cousins left. They are 12-2 and getting a stunning season out of interim quarterback Sam Darnold and are high on the quarterback they drafted, J.J. McCarthy.

Towns’ story, in relation to the Wolves, likely is and will be more complicated.

At the moment, the Knicks are the apparent winners of the deal. They acquired the best player in the trade, and he is having the best season of anyone involved in the trade.

The long-term ramifications of the trade, though, may take years to sort.

Neither Randle nor DiVincenzo has played as well as the Wolves would have hoped, as Randle has taken time acclimate to the Wolves’ systems, and DiVincenzo, coming off his best three-point shooting season ever, is this season making just 31.9 percent of his three-pointers, his lowest mark since 2021-22.

Both have contributed to the Wolves’ recent defensive surge, but the team’s offensive flow and continuity remains a work in progress.

The Wolves also received a first-round draft pick to help compensate for the many picks they traded for Rudy Gobert, and they gained financial flexibility.

The Knicks’ story will be simple: If Towns continues to play well, and helps them win in the playoffs, the trade will be considered a success.

The Wolves’ story will be more complicated. Randle and DiVincenzo may take more time to acclimate. Randle could opt out of his contract next summer, leaving the Wolves with a gap on the roster but money to spend.

The ultimate story of Cousins’ departure may eventually be that it cleared the way for McCarthy. The ultimate story of Towns’ departure may eventually be that it cleared the way for …

Naz Reid.

“What we’re seeing right now is maybe not obvious to the naked eye,” Wolves coach Chris Finch said of Reid. “He’s not scoring the ball well, he’s certainly not shooting the ball well, but every time he’s going out on the floor, he’s a plus.

“His partnership with Rudy is back to where it was last year. He’s rebounding at a high level, digging out 50-50 balls, not fouling as much, getting us to next-action basketball quickly, kind of setting pace in our offense. … He’s back to doing a lot of little things.’’

Reid could wind up becoming the Wolves’ long-term replacement for Towns, just as McCarthy may someday thank Cousins for taking the big money in Atlanta.