List of basketball players who died during their careers
This is a list of basketball players with notable careers, who died while still on a team roster or a free agent. Some suffered sudden cardiac death, which has a higher incidence in basketball among young athletes.[1][2] Some suffered from the heart condition hypertrophic cardiomyopathy,[3] which is more common in African Americans. Basketball has a considerably higher ratio of African-Americans than other sports.[4] Other deaths were caused by drug abuse.[5]
Included are players in the NBA, college, and other leagues. Players who died following the conclusion of their career should not be included. Players are listed with the team for which they last played before death, rather than the team with which the player spent most of their playing career.
Basketball teams may honor active players who died by bestowing upon them a posthumous honor of a retired number.
Deaths of active players with individually notable careers[]
Evansville Purple Aces plane crash[]
Fourteen members of the 1977–78 Evansville Purple Aces men's basketball team died in a plane crash, along with fifteen others. The players killed were:
- Seniors: Kevin Kingston, John Ed Washington, and Marion Anthony “Tony” Windburn
- Juniors: Stephen Miller and Bryan Taylor
- Sophomores: Keith Moon
- Freshmen: Warren Alston, Ray Comandella, Mike Duff, Kraig Heckendorn, Michael Joyner, Barney Lewis, Greg Smith, and Mark Siegel
David Furr, the lone member of the team who did not board Air Indiana Flight 216, died two weeks later in a car crash, meaning all the members of the team died during the 1977–78 season.
See also[]
References[]
- ^ Lakkireddy, Dhanunjaya; Gunda, Sampath; Gopinathannair, Rakesh; Murtaza, Ghulam; Gunasekaran, Prasad; Bickel, Trenton (December 2019). "Sudden Cardiac Death in Famous Athletes, Lessons Learned, Heterogeneity in Expert Recommendations and Pitfalls of Contemporary Screening Strategies". Journal of Atrial Fibrillation. 12 (4): 2193. doi:10.4022/jafib.2193. PMC 7237076. PMID 32435342.
- ^ Smith, Sam (October 16, 2005). "Collier's death raises NBA heart issue". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
- ^ Baird, Nathan (March 4, 2014). "Purdue says Jay Simpson has career-ending heart condition". Lafayette Journal & Courier. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
Purdue announced Tuesday night that Simpson's basketball career is over. Tests discovered a heart condition known as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy -- the same condition that led to the deaths of basketball stars Hank Gathers, Reggie Lewis, Kevin Duckworth and Jason Collier.
- ^ Massop, Brian (June 19, 2014). "Death on the Basketball Court". The New Yorker. Retrieved June 19, 2014.
- ^ Smith, C. Fraser (March 14, 1995). "Big-Time Basketball: So Many Tragedies". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
- ^ Galdi, Andrea (26 August 1997). "LA TRAGEDIA DI ANCILOTTO 'MA E' UNA MORTE ASSURDA'" [The tragedy of Ancilotto 'But it is an absurd death']. la Repubblica (in Italian). Retrieved 10 August 2021.
- ^ "What Demons Drove Kings' Ricky Berry to Commit Suicide?". Deseret News. August 20, 1989. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ "Cocaine Caused Bias' Death, Autopsy Reveals : Dose Said to Trigger Heart Failure; Criminal Inquiry to Be Pressed". Los Angeles Times. June 25, 1986. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ "Umro Haris Brkić". blic.rs. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ Blackwater forward Gilbert Bulawan dies after collapsing during practice Archived 2016-07-06 at the Wayback Machine, Richard Dy, Fox Sports Asia, July 3, 2016
- ^ "Autopsy shows Hawks' Collier had enlarged heart". ESPN.com. November 1, 2007. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ "NBA player fatally shot". CNN.com. May 20, 2016. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
- ^ "Dennehy was murdered in 2003". ESPN.com. June 9, 2005. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ "50 years after his bizarre death, Wayne Estes remains a towering presence". The Missoulian. February 9, 2015. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
- ^ "Felton, 29, dies after shooting". ESPN.com. August 14, 2009. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ "30 years since Scott Fenton's tragic death". Perth Wildcats. August 21, 2019. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
- ^ "Francis shot and killed in Baton Rouge". ESPN.com. May 13, 2006. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ Bieler, Des (March 26, 2021). "Grand Canyon men's basketball player dies in car crash days after starting in NCAA tournament". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
- ^ "Crash Kills Furlow". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. May 24, 1980. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ "Loyola's Gathers Collapses, Dies". Los Angeles Times. March 5, 1990. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ "Griffin killed when car hit train last week". ESPN.com. August 22, 2007. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ "Huck Hartman Dies of Pneumonia". Pittsburgh News. March 25, 1946. p. 18. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
- ^ "Lauren Hill, Who Fought Tumor to Play College Basketball, Dies at 19". New York Times. April 11, 2015. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
- ^ Perez, A. J. "Coroner confirms former NBA, UCLA player Tyler Honeycutt died by suicide". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
- ^ Faris, Nick (2 March 2020). "The incredible tale of a hoops legend and his 99-point game". TheScore.com. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
- ^ "Women's basketball player believed dead". St. Joseph Gazette. St. Joseph, Missouri. 11 February 1981. p. 38. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
- ^ Nelson, John (June 25, 1975). "Airplane Crash Claims Wndell Ladner's Life". Kentucky New Era. Associated Press. p. 20. Retrieved September 20, 2016.
- ^ "Celtics' Lewis Dies After Collapsing in a Gym". New York Times. July 28, 1993. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ "Fernando Martín, a pioneer gone too soon". euroleague.net. February 4, 2013. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ "Former Syracuse Star Dies". New York Times. July 12, 2000. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ "Meet new Binghamton forward Jordan McRae, son of former Syracuse basketball center Conrad McRae". syracuse.com. Retrieved 2017-06-14.
- ^ "Former Celtic top pick Fab Melo dead at age 26". Boston Globe. February 11, 2017. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
- ^ name=https://www.tomahawknation.com/platform/amp/2020/8/7/21358461/micahel-ojo-former-florida-state-center-dead-at-27-fsu-basketball-serbia-fmp-aba-crvena-zvezda
- ^ "Kim Perrot, 32, Leader of W.N.B.A. Champions". New York Times. August 20, 1999. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ "Details Emerge, but Petrovic's Death Still Baffles". New York Times. June 9, 1993. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ "Hornets guard Bobby Phills killed in car wreck". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. January 13, 2000. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ "Barons' star collapses, dies during cage game". Scrantonian Tribune. August 2, 1970. p. 58. Retrieved January 6, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "A Player's Unsettling Death Leaves Others Wondering Why". New York Times. January 23, 1999. Retrieved June 4, 2017.
- ^ Shapiro, Michael (October 18, 1982). "The Mystery of the Life and Death of an Athlete". The New York Times. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
- ^ "Sealy dies in collision with pickup truck". ESPN.com. May 22, 2000. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ Coghlan, Curtis (28 March 2019). "Marvin Stone dies during pro basketball game in Saudia Arabia". Advance Local. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
- ^ "Chris Street: A Hawkeye Through And Through". Bleacher Report. May 22, 2014. Retrieved April 28, 2018.
- ^ Edda Sif Pálsdóttir (14 July 2014). "Ísland í dag: Halda minningu Ölla á lofti". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 29 September 2018.
- ^ "Robert 'Tractor' Traylor found dead". ESPN.com. May 12, 2011. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ "Zeke Upshaw dies two days after collapsing during G League game". ESPN.com. March 26, 2018. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
- ^ "Suns' Vanos Among Victims in Detroit Jet Crash : Popular Center, 24, Was Expected to Be a Starter for Phoenix Next Season". Los Angeles Times. August 18, 1987. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- Lists of basketball players
- Deaths in sport