Carl Anthony Towns completely rewrites the prejudice against him for years with a series of shocking expressions

On the stage of this year's playoffs, Carl Anthony Towns completely rewritten the prejudice that the outside world has been against him for several years with a series of shocking performances. When he dragged his injured leg and scored 21 points and 13 rebounds in the life-and-death battle, and when he scored 20 points in the final quarter, the "soft eggs" labels that once put on him were being torn off one by one - this once questioned big man finally completed the transformation from a boy to a man in the tempering of his destiny.

1. The starting point of prejudice: the double shackles of soft egg labels

Downs' "Soft eggs" controversy stems from a double dilemma: as a center forward with a height of 2.11 meters, his early style of play was biased towards the periphery, and the proportion of breaking through the basket accounted for only 18% of the shots (2018-19 season data). This "space-type center forward" style of play was misunderstood as "escaping confrontation"; Butler publicly criticized "Downs lacked desire to win" during the Timberwolves, and Embiid's insult when he clashed on the court made public opinion bias form a closed loop.

In those years, fans were used to using "soft" to define him: the slump in 2 of 7 games in a single game of the playoffs was infinitely amplified, and the mistakes in the face of high-intensity defense were engraved as labels. It was not until the 2023-24 playoffs that he used a double-double of 24.3 points and 11.7 rebounds per game in the 2023-24 playoffs, especially the G4's iron-blooded performance, which made the doubts crack for the first time.

2. Mother's gift: The courage hidden in the No. 12 jersey

All the tough backgrounds are hidden in the initial warmth of life. Towns' mother Jacqueline interprets what "iron-blooded tenderness" is for her whole life - when Towns was young, she looked at other people's basketball shoes and was jealous, the Dominican mother sold her wedding jewelry to exchange him for his first pair of boots; when the Timberwolves cheered at home, the figure who always wore the No. 12 jersey and waving her arms and shouted was his most solid backing.

The winter of 2020 has become an eternal pain. When the doctor told the doctor that "the ventilator can only last for three hours", Towns trembled and pulled out the oxygen tube with his own hands. The childhood events of his mother's death became a mark engraved in the depths of his soul. It was not a simple farewell, but a coming-of-age ceremony about the "weight of life" - from that moment on, the genius boy who grew up in the greenhouse had a touch of desolate perseverance in his eyes.

III. Footnote to career attitude: The self-reshaping of the silent

The kindness of the Downs is never a footnote to weakness. When Russell joined, he personally picked up the plane, when Raven won the dunk championship, he turned into a "photographer" and when Edwards rose, he was willing to be a green leaf. After Gobert arrived, he took the initiative to play in the fourth position - the trainer revealed that the big man who "has been polishing the No. 5 position technology throughout the offseason" interprets what team first with his actions.

Even when the Timberwolves suddenly traded, his first reaction was still shocked: "I have never asked for a deal, and I have been adapting to changes." But soon, he thanked the fans with a sincere long article, and turned around and started from scratch at the Knicks. When the spotlight focused on Villanova alumni such as Brunson and Bridges, he redefined the meaning of "existence" with his All-Star performance averaged 22.5 points and 9.8 rebounds per game.

4. Metaphor of transformation: The moment he unplugged the oxygen tube, he was no longer the former Downs

After the G6 game of the playoffs, the look of Towns looking at the scoreboard was moving. This player, who was once teased as "lollipop" (sweet on the outside and soft on the inside), is now writing a new story in the paint area with the sound of muscle collision. When he shouted "This is my time" in Madison Square Garden, people suddenly realized that the man who completed the soul baptism in front of his mother's bed had already completed the reconstruction in adversity.

From the pain of ending the life of one's own hands to the frustration of being traded by the parent team, Towns's growth path is full of thorns. But as he said at the All-Star Game: "Some wounds will never heal, but they will become the wind when you run." Now, with his mother's expectations and inner flames, he is walking out of his own hard-core path amid doubts - not to prove who is wrong, but to tell the world: the boy who was once looked down upon has already grown steely wings.

When the final whistle sounded, New York fans began to chant his name. This may be the most moving metaphor for basketball: the bottom of life is never the end, but the starting point for reshaping oneself. Towns spent five years to transform the "soft egg" ridicule into a "hard" medal.