After missing the last 13 games after contracting COVID-19, Karl Anthony Towns returned to the NBA hardwood last night in a 119-112 home loss to the LA Clippers.
KAT spoke to ESPN after his game and revealed that he was not mentally prepared to play, despite tallying a double-double. KAT and his family have notably struggled with the virus as it has lead to the death of multiple family members.
“I am a high-risk case,” Towns said after the game. “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 got a good version of it. I got a lot of COVID in me, but I am going to fight and beat it.'”
He added, “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. 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.”
You can hear it straight from Towns in the thread below.
(1/6) Tough to watch Karl-Anthony Towns speak in his first game back from COVID-19. KAT talks about telling his nieces and nephews that he'll be fine when he contracted the virus. The kids responded by saying, ‘That’s what grandma said,’ referring to his late mother. pic.twitter.com/wf8fzBtOmz
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) February 11, 2021