Karl-Anthony Towns and SGA catching strays from Shane Gillis at the ESPY's

Gillis goes wild: SGA, KAT roasted at the ESPYs

The ESPYs always walk a tightrope between celebration and satire. This year, with comedian Shane Gillis hosting, the rope snapped—and he took some Kentucky legends down with it.

Former UK stars Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Karl-Anthony Towns were in the house for ESPN’s big night. SGA was fresh off a season for the ages: NBA scoring leader, league MVP, Western Conference Finals MVP, Finals MVP, and NBA champion. That’s a résumé you carve into stone. But Gillis, known for pushing boundaries, treated it more like a chalkboard.

“SGA is here,” Gillis smirked. “Everybody sitting around him is in foul trouble.” A jab at SGA’s free-throw magnetism, delivered with just enough bite to draw a smirk from the man himself. It was one of Gillis’ better lines on a night filled with Jeffrey Epstein gags, Deshaun Watson barbs, Donald Trump, Joe Rogan and a wild bit on the origin of the NFL’s tush push. Nothing was off-limits.

Then came KAT.

Towns, often an easy target, caught flak for his voice—again. Gillis delivered a tired line about KAT sounding feminine. It landed with a thud. No laugh. No camera pan. Just silence. You could almost hear Big Blue Nation and the whole city of New York collectively groan, “We’ve heard that one before.”

The whole set leaned more toward edgy than funny, a comedy roast in search of actual roast-worthy moments. Gillis made headlines, but whether he made the night memorable for the right reasons is another debate.

For Kentucky fans, it was a reminder of the program’s reach. You don’t get roasted at the ESPYs unless you’re relevant. And make no mistake—SGA is ascending into all-time great status. KAT remains a perennial star. Even on a night meant for laughs, the Cats found their way into the spotlight.