The NBA is currently on hiatus, like every major sports league in the United States, due to the COVID-19 outbreak. In the NBA there have been more than a dozen people that have tested positive for the coronavirus, including a number of high profile players like Kevin Durant, Rudy Gobert, Marcus Smart, and Donovan Mitchell. Luckily, none of the players that have tested positive have dealt with severe symptoms, but late Tuesday night we learned of one player whose family has been seriously impacted by the virus.
Karl-Anthony Towns posted an emotional video message to social media to let people know that his mother is currently in a medically induced coma and on a ventilator after contracting the virus. Towns thanked the medical team that is working with his mother but issued a heartfelt plea that this be taken extremely seriously and that people do everything they can to slow the spread of the virus as well as support the healthcare professionals facing the pandemic head on.
It is a powerful and painful video to watch, as Towns grapples with something that is terrifying for everyone, the potential of losing a parent. Towns hopes sharing how this pandemic has reached his family and telling this personal tragedy publicly can impact the public and fans to take the need for social distancing seriously, as well as issuing a plea for more support and equipment for the medical personnel. Earlier in the month, Towns made a $100,000 donation to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota to assist them in preparing for the pandemic and to see him in such emotional pain is difficult to watch but the message is important.
