Karl-Anthony Towns Announced He ‘Tested Positive For COVID’

Karl-Anthony Towns Announced He ‘Tested Positive For COVID’

On January 15, the Timberwolves were supposed to tip off against the Grizzlies. But, that game got postponed as the T’Wolves announced that “because of ongoing contact tracing within the Timberwolves, the team does not have the league-required eight available players to proceed with (January 15’s) game against the Grizzlies”.

The Timberwolves said it was postponed “in accordance with the (NBA’s) Health and Safety Protocols”. 

According to ESPN, this announcement came before its franchise player, Karl-Anthony Towns, announced this on Twitter:

RELATED: ‘The Toughest Year Of My Life’: Karl-Anthony Towns Reflects On 2020, Losing Mom to COVID-19

“Prior to tonight’s game, I received yet another awful call that I tested positive for COVID,” Towns said in a statement on Twitter. “I will immediately isolate and follow every protocol. I pray every day that this nightmare of a virus will subside and I beg everyone to continue to take it seriously by taking all of the necessary precautions.”

ESPN reported that “Gersson Rosas, the team’s president of basketball operations, said during a news conference (January 15) that the organization has had two positive tests — including Towns — over the past two days and that one player is in the league’s contact tracing protocols”.

Towns already called 2020 the “toughest year year of (his) life“. Now, in 2021, here’s yet another obstacle him and his family are facing.

According to ESPN: “(Towns’) mother, Jacqueline Cruz-Towns, died at 59 on April 13 from complications of COVID-19…Towns said before the season that six other family members have also died from complications of the virus”.

On December 23, after the Timberwolves regular season opener getting a big win to start the season, Towns dedicated the game ball to his beloved mother:

“It breaks my heart that my family, and particularly my father and sister continue to suffer from the anxiety that comes along with this diagnosis as we know all too well what the end result could be,” Towns said in the statement. “To my niece and nephew, Jolani and Max, I promise you I will not end up in a box next to grandma and I will beat this.”

This is bigger than basketball, which is truly just a game. This is life. And Towns is using his platform to spread a message bigger than himself, especially when it came to honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.‘s legacy on his holiday:

And when it comes to COVID-19, Towns also wants you to know:

“We cannot stop the spread of this virus alone, it must be a group effort by all of us,” Towns said in the statement.