Karl-Anthony Towns says Wisconsin loss was "the one that got away."
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PHOTO: Jack Pilgrim, Kentucky Sports Radio[/caption]
While most Kentucky fans were watching the Wildcats take on Fort Wayne in Rupp Arena last night, I had the opportunity to watch one former Cat put up yet another impressive performance in the NBA.
The Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Orlando Magic 124-118, where Karl-Anthony Towns managed 18 points and 13 rebounds in the team's eleventh win of the season.
After the game, I sat down with Towns to talk about his time at Kentucky, what he learned from John Calipari, the Wisconsin loss, and the relationship he has with his former Wildcat teammates.
When asked about his team's historic run in 2014-15, the former Wildcat star said the Wisconsin loss in the Final Four to end the "perfect" season still lingers in his mind.
"Hell yeah it’s on my mind. It’s on my mind all the time. That’s the one that got away from me in college. I didn’t have another chance to do it again. It’s the biggest game I lost, and it was the only game I lost," he said.
Despite the loss, Towns' Kentucky team will go down in the record books and the minds of Wildcat fans forever. When I asked about what it means to play for one of the most historic basketball teams in school history, Towns jumped in and corrected me.
"We weren’t just one of the most legendary teams in the history of our school, but in NCAA history too," he said.
Towns said they were able to accomplish what they did because of the team's seasoned veterans and how they took the freshmen under their wing to become one cohesive unit. With that, they all learned how to play winning basketball, and the rest is history.
"We were one of the most experienced Kentucky teams (during the Calipari era.) We had Willie (Cauley-Stein), Alex (Poythress), Aaron (Harrison), and Andrew (Harrison), all guys who had been to a Final Four and a National Championship," he said. "They understood, and we were very fortunate to ride on their coattails with their experience of games."
With a team as talented as theirs, playing for the name on the front of their jerseys instead of the back was crucial for reaching their goal of making a deep run in the NCAA Tournament. The individual stats may not have been like they were in high school, but they grew as a team and got better as a result.
"We understood early that not everyone is going to be "the man" every night. We all came from backgrounds where we were “the guys” for our high school teams and our respective programs. We all had that alpha dog mindset," said Towns.
Former players have talked about John Calipari and the lasting impression and advice he leaves on them after heading to the NBA. For Towns, the biggest takeaway from Coach Cal was to appreciate the historic team they had and live in the moment.
"Play in the present. He always had that on our wall going into the film room," he said. "He understood how rare and special our team was. We all knew it, but he didn’t want us to take it for granted. He always told us to play in the present, play in the now, and to not have any regrets."
As a team, they took that mentality to heart, as they knew this was a once in a lifetime opportunity they would never get to experience again as a collective unit.
"We took that to heart as a team because we understood that after that year, there was no way that all of us would be together again and we had to make the most of that opportunity. There wasn’t going to be another chance," said Towns. "Unfortunately we came up short, but I can definitely say that we cherished every single moment that we had with each other and that’s why our bonds now are so strong."
With those bonds, Towns says he keeps up with his former Kentucky teammates on a regular basis, and that he gets "choked up" every time he sees them.
"I love all of them. Every time I see them, it’s almost like I choke up a little bit because that time was so special to me," said Towns. "I try to keep up with them all the time. I was just talking to Derek (Willis) the other day, now he has a beautiful wife, he’s doing well. I talk to Alex (Poythress), talk to Willie (Cauley-Stein), talk to (Devin) Book(er), talk to Tyler Ulis, Marcus Lee, I try to talk to everyone. Even the guys that didn’t get much playing time like Tod Lanter and Sam Malone."
When he sees not only his former Kentucky teammates, but all former Wildcats thriving in the NBA and making names for themselves, Towns said there is only one explanation for it all.
"It must mean Coach Cal is doing something right. That’s an easy question to answer. Cal is doing something right. You can’t make any excuses for his success, it’s written down on paper, it’s written in stone."
Follow me on Twitter: @JackPilgrimKSR
PHOTO: Jack Pilgrim, Kentucky Sports Radio[/caption]
While most Kentucky fans were watching the Wildcats take on Fort Wayne in Rupp Arena last night, I had the opportunity to watch one former Cat put up yet another impressive performance in the NBA.
The Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Orlando Magic 124-118, where Karl-Anthony Towns managed 18 points and 13 rebounds in the team's eleventh win of the season.
After the game, I sat down with Towns to talk about his time at Kentucky, what he learned from John Calipari, the Wisconsin loss, and the relationship he has with his former Wildcat teammates.
When asked about his team's historic run in 2014-15, the former Wildcat star said the Wisconsin loss in the Final Four to end the "perfect" season still lingers in his mind.
"Hell yeah it’s on my mind. It’s on my mind all the time. That’s the one that got away from me in college. I didn’t have another chance to do it again. It’s the biggest game I lost, and it was the only game I lost," he said.
Despite the loss, Towns' Kentucky team will go down in the record books and the minds of Wildcat fans forever. When I asked about what it means to play for one of the most historic basketball teams in school history, Towns jumped in and corrected me.
"We weren’t just one of the most legendary teams in the history of our school, but in NCAA history too," he said.
Towns said they were able to accomplish what they did because of the team's seasoned veterans and how they took the freshmen under their wing to become one cohesive unit. With that, they all learned how to play winning basketball, and the rest is history.
"We were one of the most experienced Kentucky teams (during the Calipari era.) We had Willie (Cauley-Stein), Alex (Poythress), Aaron (Harrison), and Andrew (Harrison), all guys who had been to a Final Four and a National Championship," he said. "They understood, and we were very fortunate to ride on their coattails with their experience of games."
With a team as talented as theirs, playing for the name on the front of their jerseys instead of the back was crucial for reaching their goal of making a deep run in the NCAA Tournament. The individual stats may not have been like they were in high school, but they grew as a team and got better as a result.
"We understood early that not everyone is going to be "the man" every night. We all came from backgrounds where we were “the guys” for our high school teams and our respective programs. We all had that alpha dog mindset," said Towns.
Former players have talked about John Calipari and the lasting impression and advice he leaves on them after heading to the NBA. For Towns, the biggest takeaway from Coach Cal was to appreciate the historic team they had and live in the moment.
"Play in the present. He always had that on our wall going into the film room," he said. "He understood how rare and special our team was. We all knew it, but he didn’t want us to take it for granted. He always told us to play in the present, play in the now, and to not have any regrets."
As a team, they took that mentality to heart, as they knew this was a once in a lifetime opportunity they would never get to experience again as a collective unit.
"We took that to heart as a team because we understood that after that year, there was no way that all of us would be together again and we had to make the most of that opportunity. There wasn’t going to be another chance," said Towns. "Unfortunately we came up short, but I can definitely say that we cherished every single moment that we had with each other and that’s why our bonds now are so strong."
With those bonds, Towns says he keeps up with his former Kentucky teammates on a regular basis, and that he gets "choked up" every time he sees them.
"I love all of them. Every time I see them, it’s almost like I choke up a little bit because that time was so special to me," said Towns. "I try to keep up with them all the time. I was just talking to Derek (Willis) the other day, now he has a beautiful wife, he’s doing well. I talk to Alex (Poythress), talk to Willie (Cauley-Stein), talk to (Devin) Book(er), talk to Tyler Ulis, Marcus Lee, I try to talk to everyone. Even the guys that didn’t get much playing time like Tod Lanter and Sam Malone."
When he sees not only his former Kentucky teammates, but all former Wildcats thriving in the NBA and making names for themselves, Towns said there is only one explanation for it all.
"It must mean Coach Cal is doing something right. That’s an easy question to answer. Cal is doing something right. You can’t make any excuses for his success, it’s written down on paper, it’s written in stone."
Follow me on Twitter: @JackPilgrimKSR
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