For New York Knicks center/power forward Karl-Anthony Towns, the team's victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday, June 13 is bittersweet.
The 30-year-old was seen rushing through the crowd after the team's historic win to his father, Karl Towns Sr., and later paid tribute to his mother Jacqueline Cruz, who had passed away in April 2020.
© Getty Images"Y'all heard my story, y'all know my story. I just want to say: Thank you Mama, I appreciate you getting me one," he said after the win, emotional at not having his mother by his side to see the Knicks win their first championship title in over 50 years.
The period of 2020 to 2021 was particularly devastating for the NBA star, who not only lost his mother Jacqueline, but also several other family members due to Covid-19 and resulting complications. And since then, he has been open about his journey with grief and mental health.
Losing family members
In December 2020, while still playing with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Karl shared that he was dealing with the loss of several family members at the time. "I feel like I've been hardened a little bit by life and humbled," he said at the time during a press conference.
In an Instagram video earlier that year, he'd advised his followers to be wary of the disease and exercise immense caution. "I've seen a lot of coffins in the last seven months," he shared.
"I have a lot of people who have – in my family and my mom's family – gotten Covid. I'm the one looking for answers still, trying to find how to keep them healthy. It's just a lot of responsibility on me to keep my family well-informed and to make all the moves necessary to keep them alive."
© Getty ImagesBy the end of 2020, Karl had tragically lost seven relatives, and an eighth passed away due to complications from the disease by late 2021. He would continue to share videos on social media documenting his state so as to allow others dealing with loss to identify and find community.
"I didn't want people to feel the way I felt," he said. "I wanted to try to keep them from having the ordeal and the situation I was going through. It just came from a place that I didn't want people to feel as lonely and upset as I was."
"I really made that video just to protect others and keep others well-informed, even though I knew it was going to take the most emotionally out of me that I've ever been asked to do."
© Getty ImagesLosing his mother
Both of Karl's parents contracted the virus as well. While his father recovered, his mother passed away on April 13, 2020, at the age of 58. "That day changed me as a man," he said during an appearance on the podcast Peace of Mind with Taraji.
"I'm never going to get that innocent young boy back. That's gone…Ever since that day, I feel like the world just made me a little colder. It took what was most valuable to me, so I don't have that kind of feeling for it."
Keeping his mother close
Throughout his stellar 2026 season with the Knicks, Karl has spoken candidly about keeping memories of his mother alive, and dedicating the winning season to her memory. He shared with ESPN's Inside the NBA: "I felt like I was seeing her in the stands."
© Getty Images"It felt like a certain presence that was… very comforting and very loving and I felt like I could have fun out here in Game 1 of the NBA Finals which is the weirdest thing because you would expect to have the pressure at the highest."
