Movin' on up: Towns now second in NBA active Iron Man streak

Former Wolves player Corey Brewer's iron man streak ended a few days ago. That moved KArl-Anthony Towns up to second on the active consecutive games played list. Towns played — and started — his 209th game in a row Sunday against Portland; he hasn't missed a game since middle school, when he opted to play in a baseball game rather than basketball when schedules conflicted. His consecutive starting streak is best in the league right now. Only Denver's Mason Plumlee (317) has appeared in more consecutive games.

"I don't know who it was, it might have been Bud Grant, about how availability being the No. 1 ability," Wolves coach Tom Thibodeau said of the Hall of Fame former Vikings coach. "There is a lot of truth to that."

Incidentally, Thibodeau has met Grant. It was when he was an assistant under Bill Musselman during the Wolves' infancy. "We went out to dinner," Thibodeau said. "It was Bobby Knight, Bill Musselman and Sid [Hartman]. Sid put it together, of course. And it was just incredible."

• Thibodeau on Towns, who entered Sunday's game having averaged nearly five assists per game over the previous four games, all wins: "He's playing at a high level. He still scores very effectively. But his impact on winning is far greater this year than it was last year. His defense is vastly improved. But the pla-making, making the game easy for other people, is much improved."

• Wolves point guard Jeff Teague hopes to be able to shed his knee brace in another week. Teague missed seven games with a grade-one MCL sprain in his left knee. He finds the brace bulky and difficult to play with, even though he had 12 points and eight assists Friday, his second game wearing it. "And it felt worse in Game 2," he said. "The brace stinks.''