Karl-Anthony Towns on 'ultra competitor' AJ Edu of Gilas: 'He makes me better'

In the days leading to the 2023 FIBA World Cup, NBA star Karl-Anthony Towns was touted to be the leader for the Dominican Republic as he made a return to the national team for the first time in 10 years.

And he didn't disappoint in his comeback, imposing his will as he dropped a team-high 26 points alongside 10 rebounds as the Dominicans pulled off an 87-81 win against the hometown team, Gilas Pilipinas.

But his dominant performance didn't come without a challenge. In this case, it came in the form of young AJ Edu — Gilas' 23-year-old, 6-foot-10 big man who was assigned to defend him for the most part of the game.

The Minnesota Timberwolves star said Edu definitely made the game difficult for him and complimented the way the Filipino pushed him.

"I think he's a fantastic player, an ultra competitor," Towns said.

"Love the competition he brought tonight. He makes me better and Filipinos have a culture that doesn't give up and they played hard."

Edu was efficient for Gilas as he scored seven points on perfect 3-of-3 shooting percentage along with five boards.

He was also responsible for trying to slow down Towns, who missed 11 of his attempts from the field to finish with just 31-percent shooting.

The Dominican Republic big man, though, made up for it from the free throw line, where he knocked down 15 out of his 16 attempts.

"Everyone on their team is just hardworking. They really played hard so shout out to them. That's that culture, that's the Filipino culture — just hard work," Towns added.

"I really respect everyone and respect the opportunity to get the chance to compete against them."

—JMB, GMA Integrated News