The Wolves practiced on Friday to prepare to play the Nuggets. It was a rather
eventful day, with Karl-Anthony Towns speaking about being named to the 2019
All-Star Team and Kevin Garnett attending practice while shooting his TNT show
Area 21.
Towns is more than deserving of the All-Star spot, and if you ask his teammates
and coaches, it comes as no surprise. Towns found out he had been named to the
team at a screening of a movie he has a role in, “What Men Want.” His teammates,
coaches and family were all there.
Reunited with the pic.twitter.com/aFSRt5cD6l
“It’s fun to be a part of,” said Interim Head Coach Ryan Saunders. “He deserves
it, it’s a great honor, and the fact that his family was right there too and a
lot of his teammates and people within the organization, it was awesome that we
were all able to share it with him because he deserves it.”
Towns has put up incredible numbers for the Wolves, but he’s also grown
exponentially as a leader this season. Being named as to the team is a testament
to Towns’ perseverance in what has been a difficult year at times.
“A lot of emotion came out yesterday when I found out, because I felt like I had
so much doubt against me and I’d worked so tremendously hard on my body, on my
mind, on my spirit, and when I got that moment I felt that… it just felt
really special,” said Towns. “I meant it when I said I didn’t care if I made it,
that wasn’t my focus, my focus was on the team, but when you hear your name and
stuff you go through the experience that got you to this moment and I sure had a
lot.”
The fact that he was named by the coaches makes the honor even sweeter for
Towns.
“It means a lot to me to be respected by the coaches,” said Towns. “The coaches
are the ones who are really calling all the shots so I’m very, very honored. It
meant a lot to me.”
Towns also recognizes that these moments are once in a lifetime–nothing is
certain in the NBA.
“You never know if you’ll have another chance to be an All-Star. You never know
if I’ll have another chance to play NBA basketball. Today could be the last day,
years from now could be the last day, no one ever knows. I take every moment
very special,” said Towns. “The next moment is not guaranteed, my health is not
guaranteed, just got to take it as it is and be very happy with every moment
you’re given.”
However, before the All-Star game happens. the Wolves have to figure out how to
beat Denver on Saturday. The last time the two teams played at Target Center
Denver escaped with a narrow 103-101 victory. This time, the Wolves are
committed to getting a different result. A big part of that will be stopping
talented center Nikola Jokic, but Denver has talent up and down their roster.
“They have a great team all the way around. They’re very talented. It’s not just
going to be one player and it’s not just going to be one player defending,” said
Saunders. “But one thing you have to make sure of is that you don’t give a lot
of room to be a playmaker. You want to try and put ball pressure on a guy like
that, because his talent level is up there.”
In other news, Derrick Rose took contact today and looked good, though he is
still day-to-day. Robert Covington is also been doing more shooting but there is
still no timetable for his return.
Player: Karl-Anthony Towns
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