Joel Embiid (left) and Karl-Anthony Towns have been opponents on the court, but they're on the same side when it comes to fighting COVID-19. Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Joel Embiid supports Karl-Anthony Towns amid mother’s coronavirus battle

Originally posted on Sportress of Blogitude
By Jason Rowan | Last updated 3/25/20

Karl-Antony Towns revealed some frightening news about his mother’s battle with COVID-19, and one of his biggest NBA rivals has offered his thoughts and prayers.

The Minnesota Timberwolves superstar shared a video on Tuesday in which he emotionally revealed his mother was recently placed in a medically induced coma after being diagnosed with the coronavirus.

View this post on Instagram

Sharing my story in the hopes that everyone stays at home! We need more equipment and we need to help those medical personnel on the front lines. Thank you to the medical staff who are helping my mom. You are all the true heroes! Praying for all of us at this difficult time.

A post shared by Karl-Anthony Towns (@karltowns) on Mar 24, 2020 at 9:48pm PDT

There unsurprisingly has been an outpouring of support for Towns from the NBA community. One arguably surprising message of hope, however, was passed along by Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid.

We’re with you brother!!! We’ll keep praying @KarlTowns
— Joel “Do a 180” Embiid??? (@JoelEmbiid) March 25, 2020

Towns and Embiid of course were the main combatants in the NBA’s fiercest on-court dust-up of the season. The brawl occurred during a Timberwolves loss to the Sixers at Wells Fargo Center back in October.

Things then got even uglier off the court after the fight, as Towns and Embiid traded shots on social media, with some pretty nasty language and allegations getting thrown around amid the trash talk.

It merits noting that Embiid has been on the forefront when it comes to NBA players’ responses to the pandemic. He pledged $500,000 for COVID-19 relief and offered to support Sixers staffers impacted by the pandemic this week.

The fact that the Sixers superstar elected to move on from the feud with one of his most bitter rivals to lend his support during such a difficult time certainly merits praise. Odds are KAT appreciates Embiid’s gesture.

This article first appeared on Sportress of Blogitude and was syndicated with permission.

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