After missing 13 games due to testing positive for COVID-19, Karl-Anthony Towns returned to the court on Wednesday night. Following the game, he detailed his experiences with the disease.
“I am a high-risk case,” Towns told ESPN. “COVID did not treat me well whatsoever. A lot of scary nights. One of the things that I told my sister when I got COVID was that ‘Hey, I got it, and I don’t get a good version of it. I got a lot of COVID in me, but I am going to fight and beat it.'”
Not only did the 25-year old fall victim to coronavirus, but his family did as well. Towns lost his mother and six other family members to coronavirus. His mother, Jacqueline Cruz Towns died last April after she was placed on a ventilator and later in a medically induced coma. She was 58.
“Through all the long nights where I was just not feeling well whatsoever and the vitals weren’t good and decisions had to be made on my health, I kept [my family and my niece and nephew] in mind,” Towns added. “They pushed me to continue doing things. When COVID kept messing with my body, my mind, and spirit, I thought about them and my mother.”
Towns also elaborated upon the guilt he felt receiving treatment that wasn’t available to everyone, and he noted that his “rough journey, as a result of an underlying condition.”
Continuing, Towns added that his experience with COVID-19 was longer than most people’s and while he was not mentally ready to play on Wednesday, he did because of the support system provided by his teammates and coaches.
Changing the subject, Towns echoed LeBron James‘ belief that the NBA All-Star Game should not happen.
“I personally don’t believe there should be an All-Star Game, but what the hell do I know?” Towns said. “S—, I obviously haven’t dealt with COVID, probably a guy who has some insight into that. What should I know about COVID, right?”
The 2021 NBA All-Star game is set to be played on March 7 in Atlanta.
