The mother of Minnesota Timberwolves’ superstar big man Karl-Anthony Towns is currently in a coma after showing symptoms of COVID-19, the coronavirus, according to ESPN’s Nick Friedell.
Towns said his mother, Jacqueline Cruz, is in a medically induced coma and had to be put on a ventilator during an emotional video he posted late Tuesday night, explaining that she is dealing with health complications from what he believes to be COVID-19.
“I think it’s important that everyone understands the severity of what’s happening in the world right now with the coronavirus, and I think where my life is right now could help, so I decided to do this video and give you an update of where I’m at,” Towns said during the video posted to Instagram.
“I was told early last week my parents weren’t feeling well. My first reaction to her was to go seek medical attention immediately. There’s no reason to wait, just go to the nearest hospital. And after a couple days of not showing any signs of improvement, I was very adamant on the first day to go to a hospital and seek further evaluation.
“Specifically, my sister told her she needs to get checked for corona. I don’t think anyone really understood what it was, with deteriorating condition. She kept getting worse, she kept getting worse, and the hospital was doing everything they can.”
“She just wasn’t getting better,” Towns explained. “Her fever was never cutting from 103, maybe go down to 101.9 with the meds, and then immediately spike back up during the night. She was very uncomfortable. Her lungs were getting worse, her cough was getting worse. She was deteriorating. She was deteriorating — and we always felt that the next medicine would help. This is the one that’s going to get it done. This mixture is going to get it done.”
Towns explained the his family assumed that his mother had contracted COVID-19 based on the symptoms she had been showing, adding that she started to feel better before things dramatically turned.
“She was feeling great,” Towns said in the video. “We talked, and she felt she turned the corner; I felt she was turning the corner. I knew there was more days to come, but I felt that we were heading in the right direction. They said that she went sideways and things had went sideways quick. And her lungs were extremely getting worse and she was having trouble breathing, and they were just explaining to me that she had to be put on a ventilator. And she was getting worse and she was confused by everything, and I’m trying to talk to her about everything and encourage and stay positive, just talk through everything with her.”
Towns had been in constant contact with his mother prior to her being placed in a medically induced coma.
“I talked to her when she went there and told her I loved her,” Towns said. “Every day I always told her how much I love her. She was telling me things I didn’t want to hear so — I dismissed some things she was saying because it wasn’t something I want to hear. It came to a point where it’s difficult. It’s been very difficult for me and my family, to say the least. She’s the head of our household. She’s the boss.
“She’s been in a medically induced coma. Since that day, I haven’t talked to her, haven’t been able to obviously communicate with her. I’ve just been getting updates on her condition. It’s rough, and day by day we’re just seeing how it goes. We’re being positive; I’m being very positive. So I’m just keeping the strength up for everybody and my family.”
Towns went on to say that he is posting the video in the hopes that people understand just how serious it is, and hopes that his story can help in some way.
“[My family] told me to make this video so that people understand that the severity of this disease is real,” Towns said. “This disease needs to not be taken lightly. Please protect your families, your loved ones, your friends, yourself. Practice social distancing. Please don’t be in places with a lot of people; it just heightens your chances of getting this disease, and this disease … it’s deadly. It’s deadly. And we’re going to keep fighting on my side, me and my family, we’re going to keep fighting this. We’re going to beat it. We’re going to win.”