In the Calipari era, there have been two outliner teams that dominated the NCAA spectrum, 2012 and 2015. Those years were magical for the Cats, as they both set the record for most wins in a season in the NCAA with 38 victories each. 

During those runs, we saw a lot of stars on both teams shine but not as big as Anthony Davis and Karl Anthony-Towns. Both big men from different backgrounds took their specific team deep in the tournament and shined a light of their talents not only in college but now in the NBA.

But the question is now asked, who is the better team of the two, but that’s not the question for today. The question now is, “Which Cat would you want to be build an NBA team around, Anthony Davis or Karl Anthony-Towns?”

Karl Anthony-Towns should be considered the best all-around Cat to build an NBA team around.

First, let’s look into his pre-NBA stardom. This 7-0 power forward from New Jersey had everyone in college recruiting flaunting over his capabilities, so much that his own national team had acquired him at a very young age. He was playing grown men when he was in high school, something that can be contributed to his game today in Minnesota. He has always had a chip on his shoulder and made it into who he really is. 

Unlike Davis, at Kentucky, Towns had something to prove all season as his Duke-counterpart, Jahlil Okafor was getting all of the praise as the best big man in college basketball. But as the season went on, Towns showed the world that he is truly better than Okafor.

After being picked number one in the NBA draft, Towns showed his force and brought the rookie of the year honors unlike Davis did in his rookie campaign. While Towns was showing who he was, Davis was suffering his first injuries in New Orleans. After the twisted ankle injury everyone saw in the Elite 8 matchup with Baylor, that ankle was never right again.

Towns’ longevity is what makes him a great player to build a team around. Although Davis has flashes as being the most dominant big man in the league, Towns has showed no weakness to his body. When you hit a growth spurt like Davis did, your body takes a while to get used to and his body never recovered. The one thing about Towns is consistency with his body growth, which gives him the bigger frame and he uses that to his advantage creating space in the paint.

Although Davis has a lot of potential and could become the best player in the league, Towns is right behind him. With Derrick Rose moving to Minnesota, their team is hitting its strides at the right time. Going into the playoffs and actually trying to win something, consistency is your best bet. Anthony Davis can give you the 40 plus points night in and night out, but what will happen in the playoffs? The games get longer on your legs. Just ask LeBron James. It is a long and grueling task to make it. The game changes and that’s when you can see the difference. 

The game slows more in the playoffs and a loss means everything.

With everything aside, Davis and Towns are the newest generation of the power-forward in the NBA, someone big enough to body you in the paint but can spread the floor up if you need a three late in the shot clock. 

Davis and Towns run on different systems in the NBA, while the Pelicans want to play bully ball, Minnesota wants to divide everything up with their budget, something similar to Golden State, but both work on the side of winning as we see both making runs to the playoffs in the grueling Western Conference.