Naz Reid provided another glimpse into the player he both is and could be Thursday in Dallas.

Reid was the best player on the floor in the Timberwolves’ 119-101 victory over the Mavricks, tallying a team-high 27 points on the strength of seven triples.

The backup center was the spark on a night when his team came out somewhat lifeless.

“I think there was one X factor — Naz Reid,” Mavericks star Luka Doncic said after the game. “He’s an amazing player, man. And he hurt us today. He’s been hooping.”

To say the least. After a slight lull, the reserve big is averaging 18.4 points and seven rebounds over his past five games.

Karl-Anthony Towns is in the midst of another all-star quality season and again threatening the golden 50-40-90 shooting standard, as the big man is shooting 51 percent from the field, 42 percent from deep and 89 percent from the free-throw line. The ability to shoot at those clips at his size is why the 7-foot Towns has been dubbed one of the premiere “unicorns” in the NBA.

But scroll a bit further down the roster and you’ll find Reid has strikingly similar numbers. The 24-year-old is shooting 50 percent from the field, 39 percent from the 3-point line and 92 percent from the free-throw line. And while Reid’s seven made 3-pointers Thursday were great, Timberwolves coach Chris Finch noted he does so much more than that.

“(He) does it in a lot of different ways. Obviously, he’s got a lot of confidence in his threes and has been shooting it really well this year, but he’s been doing a lot more than that,” Finch told reporters. “He gives us another gear in transition, his off-the-dribble game has been great, driving and kicking. So yeah, absolutely huge.”

Reid has the ability to shoot the ball at a high clip. But on top of that, he’s so fluid with his motions and smooth with his handle.

It’s no wonder why Towns so often uses the word “special” to describe Reid. And he’s not alone. Everyone who gets an up-close-and-personal look at Reid marvels at his wide array of abilities. At the start of training camp in 2022, Austin Rivers felt the urge to call his dad — now former NBA coach Doc Rivers — to tell him, “Yo, this dude is going to be a big-time player.” Shortly after arriving in Minnesota via trade in February, veteran point guard Mike Conley said Reid is “like a guard at his position.”

He can take you on 1 on 3 in transition, do an in-and-out dribble and finish, just like he can slink past 7-foot-4 rookie phenom Victor Wembanyama for buckets and attack mismatches in the post at will.

That the same player can also be a dead-eye shooter from deep makes for a lethal combination of offensive skills. When you draw the admiration of Doncic, one of the most-skilled and smartest offensive players in the NBA, you know you’re a special talent.

That he’s been a reserve in Minnesota behind two All-NBA big men has perhaps slowed the revealing of his massive talents. But the secret is quickly getting out.

Naz Reid is not a bench player. He’s a star big man in the NBA. He just happens to be the Timberwolves’ sixth man. What a luxury that is for Minnesota, and a major reason the team currently sits atop the Western Conference.

““Naz Reid, man,” Towns told reporters Thursday night. “I knew he was special since he was young, and I get to just see the maturation of his game, and it’s really special.”

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