FILE -nJimmy Butler #23 and Karl-Anthony Towns #32 of the Minnesota Timberwolves celebrate after winning the game against the Denver Nuggets on April 11, 2018 at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Timberwolves defeated the Nuggets 112-106. Hannah Foslien/Getty Images/AFP
MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Timberwolves have two All-NBA players in the same season for the first time in 14 years.
Jimmy Butler and Karl-Anthony Towns were both named to the All-NBA third team. The league’s all-star teams were announced Thursday.
The last Timberwolves pair on the list was Kevin Garnett (first team) and Sam Cassell (second team) in 2004. That was also the last time the team made the playoffs before returning last month to end the NBA’s longest active absence.
Butler was an All-NBA third team selection in 2017 with Chicago. He shot a career-high 47.4 percent from the field and finished 15th in the league with an average of 22.2 points per game.
This was the first such honor for Towns. He led the NBA with 68 double-doubles this season.