By: LARRY VAUGHT
Photo Courtesy ESPN
Hannah Storm believes Kentucky fans are going to “love” her segment with former Wildcat Karl-Anthony Towns on Face to Face with Hannah Storm, a SportsCenter special debuting Thursday at 7 p.m. on ESPN.
“I think Kentucky fans are going to eat it up,” said Storm, an award-winning ESPN host and SportsCenter anchor. “He feels like he was at Kentucky longer than a year because he loved it so much. He knew it was the right thing to go (to the NBA), but it was hard. He loved his time there. He likes school, class and all the interesting people in college. It’s not as easy for some of these guys to leave as people think and it was tough on a young man like him who enjoyed college.”
Towns was the No. 1 pick by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the NBA draft after helping UK to a 38-1 season and Final Four appearance. Others featured on the show will be DeMarco Murray, Adam Jones, Missy Franklin, Pat Haden, Michele Roberts and Mo’ne Davis.
Storm said she was looking for athletes who had been in the news in a big way the last year but still could be in the news for a long time.
“I think he has a fascinating future. We were all talking about him before the draft and then saw him get drafted,” Storm said. “Now what is he doing. What’s his day like? Who is this guy behind the scenes? He has not got the full NBA marketing machine behind him yet.”
Storm wanted something a bit different with Towns than the sit-down studio interview she had done before. She’s never been one afraid to do a different type interview. She’s been to a zoo with kids, worked out with NFL star Arian Foster, done yoga with NFL star Clay Matthews and gone hiking with UFC sensation Ronda Rousey.
Now she can add cooking — “That was right in my wheelhouse,” she said — after her visit to Towns’ home in New Jersey.
“I was interested in his family dynamic and how that formed who he was,” Storm said. “What kind of young man was going into the world and how did it all get started. I went to his house and it was really cool. I cooked with his mom. I cooked some Dominican food that he really liked. I learned to cook one dish with potatoes and he said it was really good and he had a huge plate for dinner. We just rolled on the conversation in the kitchen.
“I got some real insight into him from his mom during our chat. It was really a good way to get in and meet his parents. We just sat at the kitchen table and did the interview and he was super comfortable. He’s such a funny kid. I had interviewed him before in studio, but that’s different and you do not get a huge sense of who he is.”
Towns, an avid golfer, had just returned from playing Bethpage Black Course in New York, a challenging layout for the world’s best players.
“I know he can hit it a long way and loves golf, but Bethpage is something else,” Storm said. “He had his golf clubs out, but the thing I came to really appreciate was that he had so many interest. There was a guitar at the house, a piano. All these things he has tried over the years. One thing he said is that he does not see basketball as a be-all, end-all. That’s not what you expect the No. 1 pick in the draft to say. But that’s not to stay he will be distracted and not pay attention. He’s just a guy who will be a great player but who will also take care of his off-court stuff and make sure he has life after basketball.”
Photo Courtesy ESPN
While some players might not have liked to play for Minnesota, Storm thinks it could be a “great fit” for Towns because of his personality and demeanor.
“I think he is the kind of guy that can fit in and make an impact and does not have to be in a big market like LA or New York to do that,” she said. “He just loves the game.
“I asked him how he would cope with losing after winning so much in high school and Kentucky. He said, ‘Who says we are going to lose?’ I love that mentality. And he’s really excited about learning from (NBA all-star) Kevin Garnett.”
Storm knows few athletes might have let anyone into their home to cook and be with the family like Towns did.
“His agent really trusted me. I get that,” she said. “I did go out to dinner with DeMarco Murray before the interview to get to know him better, but I have not cooked dinner for anyone before like that. His parents are the coolest people. They do not baby him but toe that line between discipline and nurturing him. It was just a good feeling of trust we all had and it was fun to let him be down to earth and just discusss everything.
“It was a lot more personal. I think the goofy part that Kentucky fans know will come out in the interview. He talks about how hard it was to not get to the championship game and how he was not convinced he would be the No. 1 draft pick. I just think Kentucky fans will eat it up.”
Other Guests
Here’s a brief look at the other guests who will be on Face to Face with Hannah Storm Thursday at 7 p.m. on ESPN along with Towns:
— Running back DeMarco Murray, heading to his first season with the Philadelphia Eagles, who discusses events that led him away from the Dallas Cowboys.
— Olympic medalist and world-record-holder swimmer Missy Franklin, who recently turned pro after passing up millions of dollars to attend college, touches on her place in the endorsement world with the Summer Olympics on the horizon.
— Trailblazing National Basketball Players Association executive director Michele Roberts, the first woman to head a sports union in the United States, gives insights into who she is.
— University of Southern California athletic director Pat Haden speaks candidly and emotionally of the things that matter to him the most, including his family.
— Mo’ne Davis, the 2014 Little League World Series sensation, on what her life in the past year has been like and her interest in history and civil rights as she prepares to enter high school.
— Baltimore Orioles centerfielder Adam Jones discusses the civil unrest that took over Baltimore earlier this year and speaks about what he’s doing to give younger generations an opportunity towards success
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