Minnesota Timberwolves' Karl-Anthony Towns says he's tested positive for COVID-19

Minnesota Timberwolves star Karl-Anthony Towns on Friday said that he has tested positive for COVID-19.

The diagnosis is especially hard for Towns, whose mother, Jacqueline Cruz-Towns, died at 59 on April 13 due to complications from COVID-19. She had dealt with the virus for a month.

"Prior to tonight's game, I received yet another awful call that I tested positive for COVID," Towns said in a statement shared on social media. "I will immediately isolate and follow every protocol. I pray every day that this nightmare of a virus will subside and I beg everyone to continue to take it seriously by taking all the necessary precautions.

"... It breaks my heart that my family, and particularly my father and sister continue to suffer from the anxiety that comes along with this diagnosis as we know all too well what the end result could be. To my niece and nephew ... I promise you I will not end up in a box next to grandma and I will beat this."